The Knight and The Maiden
by Roomie
Summary: Captain Ayase Eli would do anything to protect the kingdom of Otonokizaka and its people. When the urgent task to find an acquaintance of the queen comes up, she deploys Nishikino Maki, one of her right hand girls to find and bring said girl back to the kingdom. When Maki returns both her and Eli soon learn that there was more to this than just bringing someone to see their Queen.
1. Prologue

_AN: Hey everyone! This is a LL Fantasy AU, decided to upload it here as well. Proper AN's are usually on my LL blog ( .com) and I'll keep most AN's here short and sweet. As a small side note, the main pairs are NozoEli and NicoMaki, side pair/Ot3 is HonoKotoUmi and slight RinPana. The story is full of friendship and good times high fives. Thank you for all views, comments, favourites, and I hope you enjoy this fantasy AU!_

The air was still and the fog was thick as two figures swiftly made their way around the dark barn. A small lantern hanging was their only light source, and their voices were hushed as they whispered amongst each other. Double checking, triple checking that everything they needed was amongst their belongings.

"We can't waste anymore time!" the first girl whispered harshly, grabbing the reins of her giant steed. The tall charcoal horse shook his head slightly, waking himself up as he followed the girl leading him outside of the stable. His wavy mane fluttering behind him as he followed his tiny master.

The girls dark black hair was up in two twin tails, and she looked around their surroundings upon exiting the barn. The fog was so thick, all she could see was the outline of the house they had stayed in that night. A pang of guilt flashed across her ruby eyes, she felt terrible she would be leaving home like this. But she had no choice. The choice was to leave now, or suffer the consequences later.

Not long after, her comrade exited the barn as well. Her shorter buckskin horse following her. She nervously glanced around, brushing strands of her long violet hair behind her ear. She glanced towards the other girl, nodding to confirm she was ready to start the journey. With a swift motion, both girls mounted their horses.

"Aren't you forgetting something?"

The voice came out of nowhere, and both girls stiffened, surprised. Once she realized who it was, the black haired girl relaxed. She let out a small sigh of relief.

"Mama, you scared us." she whispers, watching her mother step closer to her. In her arms were two thick cloaks and another lantern.

"You'll both need these." She said, holding them out to each of the girls.

They quickly slipped the cloaks on, immediately enjoying the warmth that spread throughout their tired girls thanked the older woman, who only smiled motherly at them as she handed the first girl the lantern.

"Yazawa-san, I'm forever indebted to you." The violet haired girl whispered, her eyes watering slightly. "Thank you for everything. Thank you for Nicocchi. Thank you for saving me."

"You're not safe yet." The older woman said hoarsely. She walked over, grasping the girls hand tightly. "Keep going. Don't stop until you are. When you are, we'll be waiting for your return."

A single tear rolled down her cheek, and she nodded. The older woman tapped her cheek lightly with her hands, wiping away the tear and pulling away from her.

"We'll be off then, Mama." the former girl, Nico, whispered. Her mother turned to her, swiftly walking over. Nico leant down, giving her mother one last, tight hug.

"Take care of each other." Her mother whispered, pulling away and wiping her eyes from tears that threatened to fall.

Nico nodded, then looked to her companion. She smiled. It was a small, worried smile, but a smile nonetheless. They walked their horses towards the path, Nico's mother following them. Upon reaching the path, Nico looked at her mother one last time.

"I'll come back one day, I promise! Please tell that to Kokoro, Kocoa and Kotarou" her voice was strangled. Nico's mother nodded,smiling.

Before she could utter a reply, her eyes widened. In the distance, the thick fog was lit dimly, and the light only got stronger. The sound of hooves pounding on the ground grew louder. Their time was almost out.

"Go!" Her mother whispered urgently. "Don't look back, run for your safety, don't ever stop until you're both safe!"

Nico couldn't even muster a reply as her mother smacked the back of her horse, startling it into a sprint. The shorter girl gasped, grabbing onto the reins tightly as her horse picked up speed. Not far behind her, the second girl followed, her eyes only focused in front of them. Their horses galloping as fast as they could into the unknown, their only source of light being the small lantern.

It wasn't long before shouts from angry guards could be heard, and both girls winced upon hearing a loud shriek. It could only mean one thing, and the duo knew by the dreaded feeling in their stomachs that there was no going back. This was it.

The smaller girl gripped the lantern tightly, clenching her teeth and biting back a loud sob. Her eyes threatened to spill all the tears, but when the sound of a choked sob next to her met her ears, she used all the strength she could muster to hold back her tears.

"Nozomi." she stated, her voice clear. The second girl, Nozomi, looked over to her. Her cheeks tear stained and her lips quivering.

Nico took a small breath, before speaking in a clear voice.

"We're going to be okay." Nozomi's eyes water a bit more, and she turns away.

"Mhm" she replies.

"I promise we will be." Nico continues, her eyes forward as they could see the glow of the sun finally rising along the skyline.

In the distance, the woods leading out of Akiba came into view, and Nico urged her steed onward, her gaze fierce and determined.

"I'll keep you safe, Nozomi. I swear my life on it."


	2. Maki's Mission

AN: Thank you for all the reviews so far, One day and I got quite a few;;! It means a lot to me! Please excuse slight changes in things, I'm still getting used to this format;;.  
For those who don't know, this story has a few more chapters already published on my blog and Ao3, and I'm just gunna post the chapters daily until its caught up!

Thank you as always for reading!

* * *

The day was bright, a gentle breeze blowing through the kingdom. The castle was lively as it usually was, workers going to and from place to place, tidying up messes and tending to the outdoors. April meant two things in the Otonokizaka castle; a lot of cleaning and the start of the gardening.

On this particular day, Captain Ayase Eli of the Queen's guard and her subordinates were on their way to the Queen's quarters. Eli had been called for by Queen Minami, who insisted on a meeting as soon as possible. Her golden cape billowed behind her as she swiftly stepped through the stairwell leading to the queen's chambers. Her blonde hair tied up in her signature ponytail, and her vibrant light blue eyes glued forward as she lead the two girls in her company to the room.

To her right was Sonada Umi. Otonokizaka's top skilled archer and the second in command of the queen's guards. Her long, navy hair flowed behind her as she kept her pace a step behind Eli. Her main position amongst all the guards was working alongside her best friend Kousaka Honoka. Together, they were the personal guard to Princess Kotori.

On Eli's left was Nishikino Maki. Recently promoted to a higher rank, she became adjusted to working under Eli's instructions fast. Her sword skills were a talent talked about all throughout the castle. She was the only one amongst the guard who was left handed, which amazed a surprising amount of people. She adjusted the sleeves on her tunic, keeping an even pace with Umi as they followed their captain.

They stopped at the end of the hallway, Eli knocking firmly against the solid wooden door. From the other side, a quiet "come in" was heard, and Eli pushed the door open. The trio entered the room, and Eli gently shut the door behind them. They all bowed their heads, and Eli spoke.

"We came as quickly as possibly, your majesty." the queen smiles.

"Thank you for coming, Captain." She says. "I'm sorry for pulling you all away from your duties, but this couldn't wait."

The elegant ash haired woman pulled a piece of rolled up parchment into view. She didn't move to unroll it, and simply left it on her table. Eli eyed it as the queen explained what it was.

"I received a raven from Akiba today." She begins. "It seems that kingdom is under new leadership there. It's a bit concerning to me. I was very close with the previous king and queen."

The trio in front of her listen as the queen continues to explain. Akiba and Otonokizaka had been in a close alliance for years, their kingdoms were very close and they always did their best to attend each others festivals and events. Eli remembered, recalling invites being sent to and from the each kingdom ever so often. It had been years since they traveled all the way to Akiba for an event of any kind, and it had been the same for Akiba. Both kingdoms couldn't afford to spend too much time away from their people, especially when Akiba had grown to become as prosperous as it was.

"Captain." The queen looks at Eli. "I have an urgent request that cannot wait a moment longer." Her tone is very serious, and Eli nods.

"This is going to be a long term mission, it could range anywhere from three weeks to even half a year. The mission itself is to find the person who sent me this letter, and bring them back here." Eli's eyebrows furrow as she frowns.

"Your majesty," she starts. "There is no way I'd be able to leave the kingdom for that long. While I trust my squad with my life, and I know they'd be able to keep you, the castle, and Otonokizaka safe in my absence, I would never be able to go on a wild goose chase and leave the kingdom one knight short."

The queen lets out a small chuckle, nodding.

"I understand your concern there, Captain. Perhaps you'll consider sending one of your right hands then?" She gestures to Maki and Umi.

Umi and Maki share a glance, then look to Eli. Eli shares a look with both of them, frowning a bit more. Umi was apart of the princess' personal guards. If she were to go on the mission, she would have to discuss it with Kotori herself. Kotori being the kind and generous princess she is would probably insist Umi take part in the mission. That would leave her with Honoka as her only knew Honoka was more than capable of guarding the princess when Umi became busy, but she wasn't too comfortable with the idea of Kotori having one less knight to protect her on day trips she might take.

Maki on the other hand had only been working as Eli's other right hand since she was promoted. She didn't answer to anyone other than Eli, and when Eli didn't need her, she would be off helping out others amongst the castle until she was called for. Eli's gaze lingered on her, and she nodded a bit, concluding that Maki was the only acceptable person to take this mission.

"Umi, I'm sorry but you'll be sitting this mission out." Eli starts. "You have other responsibilities to the princess, and it'd be unwise to send one of her guards on a mission this long." She turns her body fully towards Maki, and Maki looks at her.

"Maki, you're the only one I can count on to do a mission this important." Maki stands more upright, blinking a bit surprised.

"Me?" her eyes widen and she stutters. "A-ah, I mean I'll do it! Of course I will. You can trust me with this."

Eli smiles lightly. She knew this would be Maki's first big task since her promotion, of course she'd be a bit nervous. She puts a hand on Maki's shoulder, patting it gently.

"I know. That's why this missions all yours." She says. She pulls her hand away and Maki nods.

"If you don't mind then, Captain, I'd like to give Nishikino-san a debriefing of her mission. Please stand outside until Nishikino-san and I are done." Eli nods, and her and Umi turn towards the door. They exit, closing the door behind them. Eli stands outside the door, unable to hear a word that Maki and the queen are talking about. She sighs quietly. Whoever it was, she hoped it didn't take Maki half a year to find them.

Umi excuses herself, saying she was going to head back to the princess' lesson since she was no longer needed there. Eli nodded, thanking Umi for her time. She watched as the other girl made her way down the hall to the stairs, and when she was out of sight she looked out the window in front of her.

From that window, there was a clear view of the kingdom. Eli stares out towards it, watching as citizens go about their day in the town. She smiled to herself, looking out around the castle walls and seeing various guards going about their duties. The gate was closed, as it always was at this time. In a couple hours it'd be open for the afternoon, allowing any townsfolk who needed an audience with the queen to have one. It was something the queen would do a few days a week, to allow citizens from the kingdom to come directly to her with any issue the may be having with the town or the laws.

Eli leaned over, peering farther outside as she observed the outdoors. It really was a beautiful day, and given how warm it was Eli could only assume that there would be no need to worry for anymore freezing weather to drop by unexpectedly. She glanced down in the courtyard and saw a few guards helping a castle maid lift some supplies. she couldn't tell exactly what they were, but given the amount of it she could only assume they were tools meant for the garden.

The door behind her opened, and she was drawn away from the window. Maki stepped outside, saying farewell to the queen and walking over to Eli. In her hand she held a few piece of parchment, rolled up nice and tightly. Maki held one out to her, glancing away as she did.

"This is a copy of the debriefing, her majesty wrote it out for you so that you would have an idea of the mission I'm on." She says, and Eli takes the scroll from her, thanking her.

"When do you leave?" Eli asks, unrolling the scroll and giving it a quick read.

"As soon as I'm all packed up." Maki rubs the back of her neck, before looking at Eli. "Sorry Captain, but I need to go get ready. I'm going to ask Rin and Hanayo to help get Santa prepared." with a short bow, Maki heads off.

Eli's eyes quickly analyze the mission details. Maki is to travel to the Akiba kingdom and search for a woman by the name of Nozomi. The last whereabouts of her were in the Akiba castletown, so Maki is to travel to the castletown and from there make her way to wherever Nozomi may be. Her raven would be accompanying her, and she was to send word back the moment she found this Nozomi girl.

Eli rolled the scroll back up, frowning. This mission was simple enough, but it really would be time consuming. There was no telling just how long Maki would be if the girl she searched for was moving around as well.

Eli made her way to the staircase, deciding she would wait for Maki at the gates and debrief her again before she left.

* * *

It didn't take Maki long to find the girls she had been looking for. Hoshizora Rin and Koizumi Hanayo had been her friends since she had gotten hired at the castle. Rin was a knight alongside Maki, but lower ranked in Eli's squad. She worked underneath Umi, who was familiar with hyper girls after growing up with Honoka. Rin was amazingly fast and agile as well, which was good for getting messages to and from others in the castle.

Hanayo was another worker among the castle. She worked as Kotori's lady in waiting, and could be seen doting on the princess often. Kotori didn't like to take too much of Hanayo's time when she didn't need anything, and would always excuse the shy girl when she wasn't needed. In her downtime Hanayo would still work, being attracted to the stable and helping take care of the horses there. Though some days you could also find her in the kitchen, complementing the cooks on their impeccable rice cooking skills and learning tips for herself.

It was thanks to her stable duties that Maki was able to become closer to the odd pair. It was a slow process, but Maki was grateful both girls were apart of her life. Working in the castle was always a lot better when they were around.

Hanayo and Rin agreed immediately, determined to help Maki make sure she was fully prepared for her first big mission as one of the captain's right hand knights. Maki thanked them, and went to her room to pack all clothing supplies and gold pieces that she would need for the journey.

Maki entered her room and swiftly began getting ready. She had changed into a new tunic, and packed what she could. She double checked to make sure she had all the paper documents; the letter, her map, and a rough sketch of what the girl she looked for may look like. When the queen handed it to her, she admitted that she had probably aged and may not look identical to the portrait she had been given. The only specific details the queen could guarantee would still be the same were the violet hair and green eyes this girl had.

From there she slipped on her leather gloves and grabbed her travel cloak off the coat stand, then glanced at her mirror. She double checked to make sure she had all the travel gear she needed. Maki then took in her appearance, and confirmed she was as ready as she could be for her quest.

Maki walked over to the candles, blowing them out one by one. By the time she was done, only the natural light from her window shone into the room. She quietly made her way to the door, opening it and taking one last look over the darkened room. She sighed quietly, closing the door behind her and making her way to the stables.

"Maki-chan!" Rin greeted excitedly, waving to her with her free arm. Her other arm was held up, a raven perched on it. It watched Maki with its beady eyes as she came over and gave its head a couple strokes.

"Santa's almost ready to go!" She grinned a bit more. "All we gotta do is pack up your supplies into the saddle, and then you're good to go!"

Maki smiles back.

"Thank you, Rin-chan." She walks into the stable, glancing around for her other friend. She smiled, seeing her brushing a tall, chestnut coloured stallion. Maki walked over, greeting Hanayo.

"Oh! There you are Maki-chan!" She smiles warmly. "Santa's all set. He looks raring to go too."

Maki gently strokes the horse's nose, nodding in agreement with her. She takes her cloak and ties it around herself, then looks at her two friends. They were grinning brightly. Maki smiles as well before grabbing the reins to her horse. Without a word, she exits the stables. The other two girls follow, wanting to see Maki off.

"How long will you be gone for, Maki-chan?" Hanayo asks, her hands clasped together as they walked.

"Well, I'm hoping for a month at most." Maki replies. "The mission could go anywhere from a few weeks to quite a few months." she lifts her free hand, twirling a strand of her hair. "Captain Eli thought I was best for the task, but I'm sure her and Umi would be helping if they didn't have bigger responsibilities here."

"Will you be alright on your own?" Hanayo's voice conveys the hint of worry she has. Maki glances at her and nods.

"The captain and the queen are confident I'll be fine."

"You're ravens gunna be with you the whole time too, right Maki-chan?" Rin pipes up, stroking the black birds feathers. Maki nods again.

"Yeah. My instructions are to send word when my mission is complete, or if any problems occur." She relays her instructions to her friends, and Rin nods understanding.

"I'll keep my eyes open for him!" the bright eyed girl then begins to instruct the raven to make sure he flies straight back to her the moment he flies back for home. Maki smiles as she watches her friend.

It isn't long before the castle gate comes into view, and standing right by it was the captain. Upon noticing the three girls, she began to walk towards them. She meets them halfway, nodding in acknowledgement to Rin and Hanayo. Maki turns to both girls, saying a small goodbye. Rin hands her the raven, then gives Maki a pat on the head and wishes her luck. Hanayo did the same, wishing for her safe return as well. Maki blushes a bit embarrassed they both pat her, but appreciates the kind gesture.

When the goodbyes were finished, Eli walked Maki and her horse over to the gate.

"All set?" She asks.

"Yes, captain." Maki replies.

"Glad to hear it." Eli lips quirk upward slightly. "I'm sorry you'll be doing this mission solo. I know if anyone can do it, it's you."

"Thank you, Captain." Maki says, stopping. She holds her arm out, handing Eli the black bird that quickly perched onto the blond girl's arm.

"You remember everything you need to do, right?" Eli asks, and Maki nods, repeating her mission to Eli to confirm that she had it right. Eli smiles a bit more. "Perfect. You've got everything memorized well."

"Thank you again, Captain." Maki responds, finally pulling herself up into the saddle of her horse. Once atop him, she holds her arm out for her raven again.

Eli holds her arm out, and the bird climbs back onto Maki's, impatiently waiting to be set out into the air. Maki's eyes meet Eli's, her determined gaze conveying she was ready. Eli turns, calling out to the guards at the gate.

"Hideko! Fumiko! Open the gate, please!"

A chorus of 'yes, captain!' is heard, and the front courtyard echos with the creaking sound of the gate opening up. Maki extends her arm, letting her Raven into the air. She keeps her gaze in front of her, waiting until the gate is opened completely. She turns back, seeing Rin waiting there. The shorter girl gives an energetic wave, and Maki waves back shyly.

Once the gate made its complete stop at the top, Maki turned back to the path in front of her.

"Good luck, Maki." Eli says, stepping back from her.

Maki thanks her one final time, and gentle gets her horse to walk outside the castle walls. She didn't take long to get him to break into a run, and soon Maki was out of view of the castle. It was the beginning of the most important task in her career.

* * *

Days passed quickly as Maki traveled the wide countryside. She opted to keep on the path closest to the grand river, knowing being near water would be helpful for both her and her animal companions. The grand river was a long and wide river that had extended through the Akiba kingdom and Otonokizaka. Many citizens had begun transporting things by boat using it as a water highway. It wouldn't surprise Maki if people soon began using it to travel back and forth between the two kingdoms easier.

Maki had been born and raised in Otonokizaka's castle town, and hadn't seen much more outside of it aside from the country that surrounded her home town. This was her first time traveling towards another kingdom, and she wasn't quite sure what to expect.

She didn't think she would enjoy walking through the country as much as she did. Otonokizaka had a lot of hills and trees, every day she traveled she would see something new and interesting that caught her eye. One day it was the a small forest of the tallest tree's she had ever seen. Another day, it was a small colony of rabbits that were resting along the pathway. The nature fascinated her, her amethyst eyes taking in all the beauty she was able to see.

The day she passed the border between Akiba and Otonokizaka, she had begun to feel a completely different take on the scenery. The small hills she had become used to were now one long flat plain, with the occasional slant upward in the terrain. The pathways became more prominent in the ground, and Maki knew that the road she had been on must be a main one in the kingdom.

In the distance, the first Akiba town on her map came up. She sighed in relief, glad she was able to make it before sundown. She took off one of her gloves, the lifted to fingers to her lips. With a quick blow, a loud whistle echoed through the area. She brought her hand back down, grabbing the reins with it and lifting her other arm out. In a short amount of time, her Raven landed on her arm, squawking as his greeting.

Just outside the town was a small inn. Maki sighed happily, glad her first day in the Akiba kingdom was an easy one. She pulled Santa's reins, making him come to a short stop. He huffed tiredly, and she dismounted. Her raven hopped from her arm onto the horses saddle, perching itself there.

Outside the inn, a young tanned girl was sweeping. She had paused her motions after hearing the arrival of the horse, and looked up to see Maki looking around. She stood straighter, smiling brightly.

"Welcome to the Lily White inn!" She greets, her smile welcoming. "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Erm, yes." Maki says. "Do you have any vacancies?"

The tanned girl nods enthusiastically.

"Of course! We have plenty of room for any travelers." She states with a smile. "We don't have a proper stable, but we do have a shelter where we can tie your horse. Please follow me, and then we can get your room set up!"

Maki followed the girl, walking over to the small roofed shelter. She thanked her, taking Santa over to one of the wooden posts. She took off all his gear, deciding he could use a nice rest free of the heavy equipment. Her raven had hopped onto the post watching Maki finish up freeing the horse from the saddle.

The Inn girl then grabbed some rope, draping a loop around the chestnut horses neck and tying him to said post. Maki watched her lift the lid to a barrel, revealing plenty of fresh water. She smiled as Santa immediately leaned his long neckover, taking a long drink from the barrel.

"I'll help you bring all of these into our Inn, and then we'll get you settled!" Maki thanks the girl again, both of them carrying as much as they can back to the inn.

They entered, the tanned girl calling out for a bit of assistance. Two more girls appeared, one with long mahogany coloured hair in two long pigtails, the other with shorter, brown hair. The two girls took the supplies, heading to the available room the girl had instructed them to move to. Maki watches the other girls go, and the tanned girl asks her to follow her to the counter.

They begin making arrangements for the room, and the girl introduces herself as Rakshata. Rakshata is humming quietly, doing the calculations for the room, food costs and 'stable' arrangements. Maki takes the time to look around the inn. Beside the desk was a small lobby, filled with tables and stools. On the far wall was a large fireplace, that contained two large cauldrons hanging above the fire. Maki assumed that must be where they prepared the food for the guests.

To the right of the desk was a notice board, which held announcements from the inn staff and what appeared to be various notices from the kingdom. Maki idly stared at it, seeing various types of documents. Nearing the bottom of it looked to be outlaw notices. The red head peered closely at them, reading the descriptions closely.

"Wanted: Yazawa Nico and Tojo Nozomi." Maki read aloud. She frowned, reading the small description of the two criminals. There wasn't much to it, and the notice stated they were only wanted for murder. Maki shook her head, looking away from the board. An outlaw notice like that was so vague, the king would be lucky if the criminals were ever turned in. She wondered if this Nozomi had any relation to the one she was supposed to locate.

"Here you are, miss!" Rakshata called, and Maki's attention was brought back to her. Rakshata handed her a key, instructing her what her room number was.

"Dinner shall be ready in another hour, but if you manage to forget we do have a loud bell that will go off when it's all ready. Feel free to relax, and thank you for choosing to stay at our inn!" Maki gave a small thanks, heading up towards her room. Truthfully, she was beat and could really use the time to nap before eating.

The hour passed by fast, and Maki went down to eat. She sat by herself at the far end of the table, looking over the documents of her mission. Now that she had arrived in Akiba, the true part of the mission began. Akiba's castle town was still quite a distance away, and Maki concluded staying along the path near the grand river would be a safe bet.

She folded up her map, then glanced at the other two documents. Rolled and resealed was the original letter that had been sent to the queen. Queen Minami said that should Maki meet the one who she's looking for, she should read the letter to confirm that it is her. Maki didn't know why the queen thought that would be the best way to confirm its who she's looking for, but she wasn't the type to question higher authority. She then took a look at the drawing that was given to her.

The photo was clearly drawn by the princess, who had a some of the most incredible artistic talents Maki had ever seen. The portrait was just a simple sketch, but it was very realistic. The expression was a neutral one, the girls hair parted into two low pigtails. Her bangs were swept to the side, and her face was round and child like. From what the queen told her, this was roughly based on the last time she had seen this girl. Even so, it looked like Kotori did her best to imagine how she may have aged.

Maki flipped it over, slipping it with her map and the letter. She quickly finished her stew, then stood up. Rakshata had mentioned that an innkeeper would be around to collect the dishes, so if she finished she would be fine to leave them at the spot she ate. She stretched a bit, covering her mouth to stifle a yawn. Her body ached from the nonstop traveling, and now that she was full of good food, she decided it would be best to turn in for the night. She grabbed her documents and made her way back to the room, locking her door behind her and climbing into the soft bed that awaited her. Sleep found her fast, and Maki was out like a light in no time.

After her long, good nights rest, Maki felt fully refreshed and ready to continue. She ate the breakfast provided by innkeepers, then made her way to her horse. Seeing her was fully refreshed and up for traveling, Maki wasted no time in getting him ready for continuing their long journey.

She waved goodbye to the innkeepers, thanking them all for the kind releasing her raven back into the air, she set out down the long dirt path. Her map informed that the next village would be quite the distance away, but Maki was used to camping out by now. It had only been a week and a half, but the knight was glad she had become used to the traveling.

Hours go by, and a group of buildings soon come into view. Maki frowns, a bit confused. She had passed a few farms between towns on the map, but she didn't recall seeing anything about a village this close to the one she was last in. She slows Santa down to a walk, approaching the village slowly.

Noticing the amount of people going about their day, Maki decides to dismount her horse. she grabs his reins, walking through. She looks around, its homely atmosphere making her feel quite comfortable among the tiny town. She can smell fresh baked bread and hear the sound of merchants greeting customers. She pauses, watching a mother and her daughter talk with a kind merchant. A smile makes its way to her face as she watches the child pay the merchant with a gold piece her mother handed her. The older man smiles back, handing the child an apple from his stand.

Maki decides to check where she might be, and pulls out the map from her supplies. She begins examining it, frowning when she realizes that there is no indication of this place on it. She sighs quietly, double and triple checking to make sure that this place really wasn't on the map and that she was going the right way.

"Ah, excuse me." A voice said, but Maki was too engrossed in her task at hand. She hadn't heard the voice.

"Excuse me…" the voice became more annoyed, but Maki didn't budge. The red haired girl grumbled, beginning to get a bit annoyed.

"HEY!" Startled, Maki dropped her map, watching it float to the ground. She turned quickly to where the loud shout came from, and saw the top of a head peaking slightly over her horse.  
"Could you please move your giant horse out of the way of the door?" the voice continues, and Maki can feel her face heat up in embarrassment.

"Of course," she says, pulling her horse away from the door. "I'm sorry."

"Hmph, you gotta watch where you're going next time." Maki frowns a bit, annoyed.

"It won't happen again." She mumbles, before finally seeing the person who was behind her horse.

She was a short girl, her hair was tied up in two high twin tails with two of the brightest red ribbons Maki had ever seen. They matched the ruby iris' that stared at Maki, and Maki found herself unable to look away from the tiny, cloaked girl. Underneath her red eyes were dark bags, and her features reflected just how tired she must have been. In one of her hands were a few loaves of bread, and it was at that point Maki realized she must have been blocking the bakery.

"I hope not." She says to her.

She's about to step past, before she notices the papers on the ground. Maki looks down, seeing them as well. Her eyes widen in panic as she realizes not only was it her map, but the drawing of the girl she needed to find. She quickly bent down, apologizing again as she hurriedly picked up the parchments. Maki had moved a bit too fast though, and both documents slipped from her grasp again. Maki groans as she imagines just how stupid this girl must think she is.

"You uh, dropped this. Again." The raven haired girl says, bending down to grab the papers. she holds them out to Maki, and Maki slowly takes them, thanking her for picking them up. Maki notices her gaze widen a bit, and she quickly slides the papers away.

"Say..." Maki begins. "You wouldn't happen to know why this town isn't on the map, would you?" She asks.

Before the short girl can make her get away, she freezes in place and sighs.

"This village is pretty new, it's only a couple months old. It won't be on any old maps." Her voice reflects the annoyance that's on her face. Maki pays it no mind.  
"Then if I'm to get to the main kingdom, which way am I to go?" She asks.

"Erm-"the girl in front of her tenses "Couldn't tell you, sorry." She pauses.

"Wait, so you're not a guard from Akiba then?" Maki becomes a bit surprised, wondering why this stranger assumed she was a guard.

"No, I'm not." Maki says. "I'm a knight from the Otonokizaka kingdom." red eyes widen a bit more, her face going from annoyed to curious in the blink of an eye.

"What's a single knight from Otonokizaka doing in a tiny town like this?!" She asks, the red haired knight beginning to frown.

"None of your business, really." She replies. She turns to her horse, putting her papers away. "Look, if you can't help me, I'll be on my way then."

"I might not to be able to help you," The stranger quickly says. "But I just so happen to know someone who can." Maki stops, turning back to the other girl.

She watches her take a few steps away, then look over her shoulder towards her.

"Well? Follow me if you want help." Maki frowns, pulling the reins of her horse. She's doubting that this girl actually knows someone who may be able to help her, but at this point she'll try to get all the help she can.

She follows her towards the outskirts of the village, her steps only a few paces behind the other girls. Despite the other girls shorter legs, she has quite the fast pace to her steps. In no time they're both farther away from the houses and the townsfolk. Maki can't see any other people in sight, and she begins to suspect that she may have been tricked. She slips a hand underneath her cloak, keeping it at the ready near her girl in front of her glances around both ways, before looking to Maki.

"Alright, it's not much farther." She says, quickening her pace a bit. Maki follows her as closely as she can, unsure if she really was wise to trust this girl.

It isn't long before figures come into view, and Maki can see two horses in the not so far distance. A cloaked person had their back to them, petting one of the horses. Maki sighed a bit to herself, moving her hand away from the blade attached to her belt.

"I'm back." the black haired girl calls, and the cloaked figure turns, facing them.

"Welcome back, Nicocchi!" The new stranger's voice is happy as she greets the shorter girl. She quickly notices Maki, and continues speaking. "Oh! and a new friend?" she asks. Maki can't see her face, but her tone sounds amused.

"Not really." the first girl says. She gestures to Maki. "This is a knight from Otonokizaka. She needs help getting to the castle town. You know the way better than I do." She lowers her hand, then walks towards the other horse with the bread she carried.

Maki bows her head a bit. "Ah- I'm Nishikino Maki." She introduces herself, lifting her head. "I apologize for troubling you, I just seem to be a bit lost."

Maki finally notices part of the other girls face, and see's the small smile.

"There's no problem at all, I'd be happy to help." She steps over to Maki. "But what might you need from Akiba's castle town? We don't see many Otonokizaka knights making their way through the kingdom on their own."

"Oh," Maki says, then reaches into her belongings and looking through the papers. "I'm actually on a mission for our queen."

She hesitates a bit, looking between the two strangers. She didn't know why, but part of her knew maybe these girls might have an idea on how to help her find the person she's looking for. Slowly, she holds out the drawing to the hooded girl in front of her.

"I'm looking for a young woman who looks like this. Or, similar to." Maki lifts a hand, twirling a bit of her hair between her fingers.

The hooded girl takes the drawing from her, taking a close glance at it. She suddenly gasps, and whips her head around to her companion.

"Nicocchi!" her voice is clearly excited now, and Maki can feel herself perking up. This girl knew something.

"Do you know this girl?!" Maki asks, her voice unable to hide the excitement she felt.

"I should hope so!, After all" The hooded girl laughs, turning her face back to the knight and handing the image back. She lifts her hands and pulls her hood down, revealing a bright grin and green eyes that look directly into Maki's. "This girl is me."


	3. The Journey Back

Maki was unable to believe her luck. She immediately began examining the girl in front of her.

She was short as well, but stood quite a bit taller than her companion. Her face was indeed round, just like the description image she was given. Maki found it unbelievable how close the actual woman was to a guessed drawing. Her violet hair was a lot longer, but Maki could see that it was indeed tied in its low twintails. She checked her eyes again, and there was no doubt that they were the most vibrant green eyes she had ever seen. Underneath them were tiny bags, much like the first girls. Maki could only conclude they had been non-stop traveling throughout the night.

It only hits Maki then that the other girl had called her Nozomi, and she clears her throat.

"You are Nozomi then?" she asks, knowing the answer already.

"I am." Nozomi confirms, turning her head towards the other girl. "The girl who brought you here is Nico, my most trusted friend."

Nico had been minding her own business, stroking her horse. Once hearing her name, she turns over to them, giving a tired wave as a sign she acknowledged the greeting. Maki's gaze lingered on her, before going back to Nozomi. The violet haired girl still smiled, before speaking again.

"Can I ask why you're looking for me?" She questions. Maki turns to her saddle, pulling out the letter the Queen had given her, as well as some blank parchment.

"Her Majesty Queen Minami received this letter from you." Maki says, holding out the rolled up scroll. "After reading it's contents, she deployed me to find and bring you to the Otonokizaka kingdom. The mission was expected to go on a lot longer than this, but I think we both got a bit lucky." she offers an awkward smile as Nozomi takes the scroll from her.

With a gentle movement of her fingers, Nozomi reopens the seal. She unravels it, only giving the letter a small glance. She rolls it back up, giving Maki a small nod to confirm that she wrote it. Maki sighs, relieved.

"The Queen was so concerned, she sent a knight to come find you?" Nico speaks up, walking over from her horse to the other two girls. Nozomi turns to her, smiling.

"It looks like it." She replies.

Maki tunes out their conversation as she pulls her glove off and brings two fingers to her lips. With a strong blow, a loud whistle echoes through the area. The other two girls turn quickly, surprised from the sudden noise. They watch as Maki holds her arm out, waiting for her raven to land.

"What the heck are you doing!?" Nico asks suddenly, a giant frown on her face. Maki glances over to her.

"Sending word back to the Queen and my Captain." Maki answers. "My raven will arrive a few days before we do. This way, the Queen will be prepared for your arrival." Soon her raven comes into view, and she stiffens her arm out as he makes his landing. He squawks his loud greeting, and Maki strokes his feathers. She gently gets him to perch on the saddle, before grabbing her quill and ink.

"Excuse me for a moment." Maki mumbles, and Nozomi smiles.

"Take your time, Nishikino-san."

Maki soon realizes that writing on the back of a horse with a quill and ink may be a bit difficult. She ponders where to place the bottle, before giving up and choosing to write on the ground. Closing her eyes and taking a small breath, she ignores all the embarrassing thoughts passing through her mind as she kneels on the ground, opening up the bottle and dipping the quill in it.

The first message she writes is quick and to the point, a simple "Mission completed, found the girl." This message would be for the captain. She signs her name, then pulls her other blank parchment to her. As she writes a message for her queen, she can hear quiet whispers between the other two in her company.

She glances up, watching as the ruby eyed girl brings the violet haired girls hood back up, mumbling about how it had been down too long. Nozomi laughs lightly, giving a small apology and bringing her hood closer around her face. Maki looked back to her letter, scrawling that the girl was tired, but okay and they would be back to the kingdom in no time. She signs her name again, before grabbing the papers and standing up.

She tightly rolls both pieces up, grabbing the scroll strap from her supplies. In no time, Maki was able to get the leather strap onto her raven, slipping both messages into the tiny case. Holding her arm out, she watches as the black bird hops onto her arm. She strokes his head a couple times, before whispering his directions.

"Head straight to Rin-chan." The bird looks at Maki with its beady black eyes, and before long she lets him off into the air, watching him fly off with great speed.

The redhead turns towards the other two, who were watching her quietly. Nozomi's face is covered again, but Maki can still make out the smile she continued to wear. The other girl was idly munching on a loaf of bread that she had bought earlier.

"I guess I'll be bringing you with me now." Maki says, packing up the quill and ink. She glances between them, before continuing. "My instructions were only to bring back Nozomi, but-" she pauses, taking in their expressions and glancing to the side. "I don't think the Queen knew someone would be with her. In any case, I'll bring you both. I don't think the Queen will mind your friend being with you."

Maki watches a bit of relief wash over the black haired girls face. She shrugs, then speaks.

"Well, it can't be helped. When do we leave?" Maki can feel her eyebrow twitch slightly. What an attitude this girl had.

"Right now." Maki replies as she mounts her horse. He steps slightly, shaking his head a bit.

"What? Now?" she groans, slumping slightly. "I thought we would have been done traveling for today."

"Now now, Nicocchi." Nozomi says, climbing onto her own horse. "We can't keep the Queen waiting too long."

Nico grumbled, walking over towards her horse. With a bit more effort than Maki thought was necessary, she was able to mount the tall black mammal. It was in that moment Maki took in just how tall her horse was compared to her, and she wondered how Nico was even able to control him, given how tiny she was.

"The next village is only a couple hours away." Maki speaks up, turning her horse and getting him to walk. "It's not long, you'll live." Nico huffs and Nozomi laughs.

"Don't mind Niccochi too much, Nishikino-san." Nozomi says, following her. "She'll be fine when we're done traveling."

"Alright." Maki's voice trails off, and the trio begins their silent journey.

Their pace is slow as the horses trek along the pathway out of town. Maki doesn't question it, since she preferred silence when among new people. Though she could tell part of the reason the other girls didn't speak was related to how tired they must have been. She only walked a few paces ahead of them as she lead the way towards her kingdom. Nozomi would occasionally ask Maki the odd question about it. Questions like 'was the kingdom large, would they be passing through many towns, how long did it take Maki to get to where she was.' Maki answered all of them, not caring about the curiosity Nozomi had.

She would occasionally hear a grumble coming from her left, and would check behind her to make sure Nico was fine. Clearly, she wasn't. Her grip on the reins was tight, and her eyes were drooping ridiculously. Maki frowned a bit, feeling slight concern. They were still quite a bit away from the village, and Maki didn't want the black haired girl to fall asleep and topple off the horse. With some reluctance, she slowed her horse down to walk alongside the other girls. She cleared her throat, then began to make small talk with her.

"So your names Nico, right?" she asks.

Nico looks over, her tired red eyes landing on Maki.

"Yeah, I'm Nico." she replies. "Why?"

Maki resists the urge to roll her eyes.

"No real reason, just wanted to make sure I remembered your name right." she hears the black haired girl grumble again, giving no more than that as a response.

The red head sighs. She had always been a bit socially awkward, never knowing what to say in appropriate situations. As Rin would say, 'What she lacked in social skills, she made up for with her sword skills.'

She smiled a bit as she thought about her orange haired friend at the castle. She wondered what she was up to today. Maybe she had the day off and was spending it with Hanayo, or maybe she was goofing off with Honoka. Umi later scolding the both of them and commenting on how unprofessional it was for knights to play around in the middle of the halls.

She hadn't realized just how much she missed the castle until that moment. Living and working inside the castle had been Maki's life for the last two years. Every day she got to greet and work with her friends, and she loved it.

Maki hadn't had any friends up until becoming a knight, she grew up being the only child of a couple who ran the apothecary in Otonokizaka's castle town. Her mother and father kept busy making medicines and growing medical herbs, and she often found herself helping them here and there.

When she announced to them she wanted to join the ranks and become a knight, both of her parents were thrilled and helped support her. Maki would do her own sort of training in her backyard, and she continued this for quite a few years. Before long she was ready, and when she got accepted into the ranks, she had said goodbye to her parents. Every so often she would take the time to go see them, to check in and tell them how she was doing too.

Maki begins to smile more as she thinks about how far she has come. The smile doesn't go unnoticed, as two pairs of eyes watch her. Maki can suddenly feel the stares and she quickly looks at both of them.

"W-what is it?" She stutters, clearing her throat after words. "Is there something weird about me?"

"You're smiling pretty creepily." Nico mumbles. Maki turns swiftly to glare at her.

Nozomi quickly cuts in before Maki can respond.

"Thinking about something good, Nishikino-san?" She asks, her face more visible than it was before. Maki looks over to her.

"Yeah, I was just thinking about home." She admits. She watches Nozomi smile slightly.

"Home huh.." her voice trails off as she looks back ahead. "Do you miss it?"

"Well, no. I mean, yes, I do but- well, it's not like I was going to be gone forever, you know?" Maki fumbles with her reply, looking down and hoping her face doesn't reflect the embarrassment she's feeling.

With her face down, she misses the pained expression that passes over Nico's face. She quickly turns away from the other two, gripping her horse's reins tighter. Nozomi keeps her eyes ahead on the path, not daring to look away from it.

"That's true." She states. "Do you have someone back home waiting for you~?" Her voice has a mischievous hint to it, and Maki lifts her head. Amethyst eyes look over to the cloaked girl.

"The Captain will be there, along with my comrades." Maki says plainly. A small giggle comes from Nozomi, and Maki frowns slightly. "Well, it's not like you don't have someone waiting for you either. The Queen has been eager to see you the moment she got that letter."

Maki watches Nozomi hums an agreement, deciding to stay quiet after that. She had wanted to ask about the contents of the letter, about what the Queen might want to see her for. She wanted to ask how the Queen even knew her. But Maki wasn't the type to pry into others business. She knew this was something that would be told to her if she needed to know. So she stayed quiet, turning back to the main path and focusing on reaching their destination.

The sun had lowered considerably when they finally reached the village. The exhaustion was hitting Nico hard, her eyes practically closed as they walked through the town. Her head fell forward, the slow pace almost lulling her to sleep. Maki reached over, grasping the loose reins with her hand and stepping a bit closer to Nico's horse. She looked over to Nozomi, who was sitting up straighter. She brought her hood tighter around her face the closer the deeper they entered the village. Feeling Maki's gaze, she looks over, offering a tired smile.

Maki looked away, leading them to the inn she had stayed at the night before. She rounded a corner, and sure enough at the end of the path was the inn, lanterns lit up outside of it. Maki sighed, relieved they had finally made it. She looked to her left, eyeing the practically asleep girl. With a small toss, she let the reins of the black horse hit the girl atop it. She jolted up with a small start, glancing around quickly and holding on tightly to the horse's mane. She quickly looked to her right, relaxing a bit when she saw both girls. She took hold of the reins in one hand, and rubbed her eyes with the other.

"Sleep well?" Maki asked. Nico groaned in response.

"Well, you will soon." Maki responds, slowing Santa to a stop in front of the inn. With a swift movement, she had dismounted him and stretched her arms. "We'll be resting here tonight."

Nico glanced between Nozomi and the inn, before looking at Maki.

"An Inn?" She asks. Maki nods to confirm it. "I don't even know if we have enough gold on us to stay here."

"I'll pay for it then." Maki says nonchalantly. Nico's eyebrow twitches a bit as she stares at Maki.

"W-well what if I want to enjoy the great outdoors more?" her rebuttal is weak and Maki narrows her eyes.

"Really?" the red haired girl crosses her arms, looking up to the black haired girl. "You're clearly in need of a good rest in a bed. A bed I'm willing to pay for you to sleep in. But you want to sleep out here." Maki gestures to the open country ahead, and Nico purses her lips.

The redhead frowns a bit.

"You're troublesome. Fine, have it your way." She turns her attention to Nozomi, who had dismounted her horse as well. "What Nico decides to do is her business, but I'm going to suggest you stay at the inn with me."

"If you don't mind, I will happily take up that offer." Nico makes a sound of protest to Nozomi's decision, and Nozomi looks at her.

"Nicocchi, it's for one night. You could use the rest in a real bed too."

Nico's face becomes more displeased, and she dismounts her horse as well. Reluctantly, she takes up Maki's offer. Maki turns walking towards the door.

"I'll get our rooms then." Nico follows her.

"I'll go with you. Nozomi, we won't be long." she says. Nozomi smiles and nods, watching as the two girls enter the cozy inn.

The door opens with ease, and Maki glances around the lobby. She see's Rakshata at the front desk, idly scribbling on some parchment. Maki walks over to her quietly, Nico following a couple steps behind her. Rakshata glances up as she hears the approaching steps, and a smile adorns her face.

"Ah! Welcome back!" she greets Maki. "Are you looking to stay another night?" Maki answers her question with a simple nod.

"I have two others joining me, as well as three horses." Rakshata smiles brighter.

"We can accommodate all of you! Let us get your horses ready for the night." She walks around from behind the desk, smiling warmly at the both of them. Maki follows her towards the door, glancing at Nico. Nico hadn't moved from the desk, her attention on the notice board that stood beside it. Maki let her gaze linger before she turned to head back outside.

Rakshata, Nozomi and Maki lead the horses to the shelter, stripping them of their equipment and watching as the three giant animals took long drinks from the now opened water barrels. With a bit of difficulty, the three of them managed to drag the equipment back into the inn, and Nico looked over to them.

"Oh, there you are." she says offhandedly. "I didn't know where you went, so I figured I'd just wait here for you to come back."

Maki sighs, too tired to argue that she could've paid attention to the conversation Maki was having earlier. They place the gear down on the wooden floor, and Rakshata begins making arrangements for the rooms and the payment with Maki. Its a quick conversation, Maki paying all the fees easily, and getting the keys from the innkeeper in front of her.

"Thank you for choosing to stay at the Lily White inn!" She chirps happily, and Maki turns to the two accompanying her.

"Here you are." She hands Nozomi a key. "I got a two bed room for you two. My room will be across the hall." Nozomi nods and thanks Maki, grasping the key tightly.

"Let's take a look at the room." Nozomi says to Nico, who nods. "We'll see you at dinner." Nozomi smiles softly at Maki, who only nods. She watches both girls grab their equipment and head towards the stairs. Maki quickly grabs her own things, about to make her way to her room as well. Before she makes her way to the stairs, she steals a glance towards the notice board. Something seemed off about it, but she couldn't quite place her finger on it. It's possible that a new notice went up while she was away, but Maki concluded she'd find out when she took another look at it later.

After getting her belongings into her room, Maki heads down to the dining hall. With her she has her map and her mission details. In her downtime she decided she would go over them one last time, confirming if she had anything else she may have to do along the way. She took a seat at a small table, splaying the map out and placing the mission details to the side.

She had marked the path she had been taking along the way, and taking her quill she drew in a tiny house to mark the new village that hadn't been marked onto it. She stared at it, looking at the black lines that had marked where she had traveled. The fastest way was probably to just go the exact way she had arrived, and after concluding that she put away her quill. She kept the map open, taking in the contents of it all. There were many parts of Otonokizaka she still had yet to see, like the tiny village amongst the forest. From what Umi had said, that was where Eli had grown up. She wondered if Eli ever missed it, given she never took a day off. She looked on the other side of where the river was marked, seeing only one town and small village marked there. Maybe one day her next mission would send her over to one of those towns. With that in mind, Maki closed up her map, excitedly thinking about future missions outside of the castle. She brings the other parchment out, her eyes skimming the mission details she had long memorized for anything that she possibly missed.

"Looks like you're already down here." Maki's brought out of her thoughts when she hears Nozomi's voice. She glances towards the sound of it,not surprised to see that Nico is with her. Both girls had stripped themselves of their travel cloaks, and were wearing casual civilian attire. Nico's tunic was worn down beige colour, and was clearly very old. Nozomi's tunic on the other hand looked brand new, and must have been purchased along their journey. It's brown colour still bold and clean. "Are we interrupting anything?" She glances at the paper on the table in front of Maki.

"No, not really." Maki slides it over to the side, gesturing for the both of them to take the chairs in front of her. "I didn't expect you both to be down until dinner, so I was just going over the map and any other details of my mission." She admits as the other two girls sit in front of her.

Nico puts her elbow on the table, placing her chin in her hand and leering at Maki. It takes every bit of Maki not to glance back at her. She couldn't shake that feeling of those bright red eyes boring into her, searching her for something. Maki didn't understand what Nico's deal was, and she was trying her best not to care too much.

"Isn't everything going the way it should?" Nico inquired, her gaze not straying from Maki.

"It is." Was Maki's short reply.

"Then you have nothing to worry about." Nico finally tears her eyes off of Maki, letting her gaze float around the inn more.

It falls silent between the three of them, Maki glancing towards the fire. By the looks of it, they would be serving dinner soon. The quiet rumbling in her stomach reminded her of how hungry she was feeling, and she was grateful it wouldn't be too much longer.

"It's very relaxing here." Nozomi comments. She had been observing the innkeepers and other travelers who had taken shelter there for the night. "Kind of... spiritual." There's a playful smile adorning her lips.

She pulls out a deck of cards, resting it on the table. Maki glances towards them, one of her eyebrows quirking upward. Nozomi catches this and grins.

"Would you like me to read your fortune, Nishikino-san?" Nozomi asks, picking the deck up and shuffling them. Maki shakes her head.

"I'll pass, Nozomi-san."

"Are you sure? My fortunes are pretty accurate." She brags, placing the now shuffled deck back onto the table. When Maki declines the offer again, she shrugs slightly.

"Suit yourself. What about you, Nicocchi?"

Nico ponders it, before shrugging.

"Sure."

Nozomi begins to lay the cards out flat into two rows in front of Nico. Maki uninterestedly watches as Nico selects six different cards. Three from one row and three in another. Nozomi takes the rest of the cards, stacking them up next to her before flipping the first card Nico picked. Maki is only half paying attention by now as Nozomi's voice becoming background noise.

It isn't long before a loud bell sounds, and an innkeeper announces that dinner is ready. The three of them grab their food, and Maki continues to listen to them as they eat. Her mind wanders back to the message board, thinking about what was so different about it. She spaces out, trying to recall every message she could from earlier that day, connecting what had been there that morning with what hadn't that evening.

Maki begins to feel a bit unsettled as she pieces together exactly what had been different from the board. At that moment she also realized that a pair of red eyes had been watching her throughout the whole time she had been out of it and eating. Amethyst eyes lock with ruby, and they hold their gaze for a brief moment. Maki's eyes narrow slightly as Nico's quickly glance away.

After finishing her meal, Nozomi decides she's going to turn in and for an early night.

She says goodnight to the two still eating, before making her way out of the dining hall and up the stairs. As soon as she's out of sight, Maki speaks up.

"Why were you staring at me that whole time?" Her voice is blunt and to the point, and Nico flinches slightly.

"I-I wasn't!" She mumbles, and Maki rolls her eyes.

"Right." Is her sarcastic reply.

The tension is thick between the two, Nico's eyes not daring to look a Maki again. Maki puts her now empty plate to the side, leaning forward before she speaks again.

"I saw what you did to the bulletin board." Her voice is quiet and hushed, and Nico's gaze is back on her. "You took down those wanted posters."

Nico's eyes narrow. She stays quiet, ripping off tiny pieces of her roll and idly munching them. Maki's still leant forward, determined to find out this girls motive. She claps her hands together as she rests her chin onto of them.

"There's a lot I want to say about it too." Her voice is still quiet as Nico brings her attention back to her. "But I'd like to find out the facts first."

Nico huffs a bit, turning her face so she's gazing out to the dining room and not at the knight in front of her. Maki continues to speak after her silence.

"I have no idea why our Queen want a couple of criminals, but she does. So I won't be turning you into any authorities around here, if that's what you're worried about."

With a swift movement, Nico is standing. She reaches across the table, one hand tightly grabbing ahold of Maki's wrist and pulling her up just as quickly. Maki gasps surprised, quickly remembering to grab her documents as Nico drags her away from the table hurriedly. She's stumbling after the shorter girl, almost losing her footing as she gets dragged upstairs.

"H-hey! What are you doing?!" She cries out surprised. It isn't long before they're outside Maki's room door, and Nico whips it open, pushing Maki inside first and quickly shutting the wooden door behind them. Before Maki can even protest, Nico finally speaks.

"Look, I've been through absolute hell these past few weeks. You showing up has been the first good sign for us and I might be stupid for doing this, but I'm going to trust you anyway."

Maki's face falls into a confused expression before Nico's eyes flash with a deathly serious gaze.

"What I'm about to tell you does not leave this room, got it?" the serious but soft tone is surprising to Maki, and she finds herself only able to nod as a reply. The black haired girl sighs tiredly as she relaxes. She takes a deep breath, calming herself a bit before continuing.

"It all started about a month ago..."

* * *

It had been a few days since then, and back and Otonokizaka castle Eli finds herself getting ready to do her daily training. Every day during her downtime, the blonde captain liked to practice in the training yard. Keeping herself fit and ready for anything. She wears only her light blue tunic, deep brown gloves and her every day boots as she makes her way towards the large outdoor yard. Most of the castle staff liked to do their own things, small hobbies or various personal projects, but not the captain. She always made sure she was in tip top condition, ready for any kind of emergency that might occur.

Eli never relaxed, and sometimes it concerned her squad members. Occasionally the Queen would make it an official request that she take the time for herself. It was in those situations Eli never knew what to do with herself. She was very independant, and because of the intimidating aura she gave off, people outside of her group weren't very social with her. Eli didn't mind, she preferred to be in her own company most of the time. Although she wouldn't deny that some days she did feel rather lonely. Those days were days she would send a letter to her sister back home, giving them an update on life in the castle and asking how everyone there is doing. The days she got replies were always her happiest days.

She made her way down the long corridor, her thoughts only on the training routine she had planned to do that day. A door opens in front of her, and out step Honoka and Kotori. She approaches them with a small smile on her face.

"Good afternoon, Princess." she greets, bowing her head. Kotori turns and smiles brightly at Eli.

"Good afternoon, Captain! What are you up to?" She asks, her smile widening slightly.

"Just heading out to train, Princess." Eli's replies. Honoka smiles a bit.

"Again, Captain?" She asks, and Eli just nods.

"You don't have to do it alone, I'm sure Umi-chan would love to practice with you." Kotori comments, and Honoka makes a sound of agreement. Eli shakes her head a bit, smiling softly as she replies.

"It's alright, Princess. I like the time alone I get when I practice."

Kotori and Honoka share a look before the taller of the two smiles at Eli.

"If you say so, Captain." Kotori then excuses herself and Honoka, commenting on how they plan to go sit in on Umi's archery practice. Eli says goodbye, before continuing down the hallway.

Soon enough she was outdoors and in the training grounds. She made her way into the small training hut that was stored with the training gear and weapons. Many knights who had fallen in battle or had purchased new armor and weapons would donate their old gear to help new recruits with their training. Most weapons weren't fit for actual battle, being too dull or very worn out.

Eli picked out a simple wooden sword meant for beginning sword fighters, and made her way towards the hanging dummies. She stood in front of it, bringing her sword up and before long, she was striking the dummy with a plethora of different hits. She slashed and jabbed at it, always aiming for the vital areas of the lifeless sack that hung in front of her.

This was how her practice went every day. She'd pick a sword, usually the same wooden one, pick the less worn dummy and strike at it to her heart's content. After she was finished, she cleaned up any mess there was and would go for a walk around the castle grounds before heading to the dining hall for dinner. That is how the captain spent her free time, and she enjoyed it. Even if it did get lonely after some time.

Suddenly, a loud shout brought Eli from her training, and she immediately halted her movements.

"CAPTAIN!" the voice echoed, and Eli quickly dropped her sword and exited the small building.

Running towards her at full speed was Rin, her face a light pink and her breathing heavy. She skidded to a stop in front of the taller girl, leaning over to catch her breath from the long sprint she had done to get to her.

"Rin, what's the matter? Is everything alright?" the blonde immediately voices her concern, watching as the short haired girl stands straighter.

"M-Maki's raven returned earlier than expected!"

Eli's eys widen in slight panic as Rin stands straight.

"Kayo-chin spotted him from the stable, and he came straight to me after I called him down. He had two letters, one for the Queen and one addressed to you." Rin reports, holding out the second letter for Eli.

Eli takes the small parchment, unraveling it quickly. Her eyes dart back and forth as she reads the small message, before letting out a sigh of relief. Rin perks up, her voice sounding hopeful when she speaks.

"That sounds good! Is Maki-chan okay?!" there's concern mixed with excitement in the younger girls voice and Eli gives her a reassuring smile.

"Maki is fine. It looks like her missions over." She responds.

"Eh?! Already?!" Rin gasps, "That means Maki-chan will be home soon!" Rin laughs happily, jumping up to express her excitement.

"Captain!" Eli glances towards the castle, spotting Honoka, Umi and Kotori running over to them.

"We just heard from Hanayo-chan!" Honoka states "Is Maki-chan alright?! Do we need to send her help?!"

The blonde shakes her head, and Honoka relaxes immediately.

"Thank goodness!" Kotori says relieved.

"Does this mean her mission is finished?" Umi asks, looking at Eli.

"That's what her letter says." Eli hands the paper over to Umi, who examines it as well. She frowns, concern still etched in her face.

"There was no way she could have made it to the castle town in this time." She declares. "It would take her at a minimum three weeks. She hasn't even been gone for two."

"I agree." All eyes turn to Eli as she speaks. "The only possible way Maki completed her mission is if whatever she was sent to find was found closer to Otonokizaka than expected." She glances to the castle before looking at the other girls.

"Maki will be home soon. We'll have guards occupy the watch towers just outside of town keep an eye out for her. We won't know anything more about how the mission went until she comes home, so lets be ready to welcome her back from the journey and let her tell the story."

Rin, Umi and Honoka's voices echo a chorus of "Yes, Captain!" Eli instructs Rin to find Hideko, Fumiko and Mika and bring them to Eli's quarters. Rin immediately dashes off, focusing her energy into her current task. Eli looks to Umi and Honoka, nodding to them before walking off to her room. The trio left in the courtyard watch as she leaves, and Honoka turns to her friends with a small smile.

"I'm glad to hear Maki-chan is alright at least." She comments, and Kotori and Umi nod in agreement.

* * *

The rest of the journey had been uneventful for Maki and company. They traveled through the lightened woods, the final landmark that was between Otonokizaka's castle town and the trio of travelers. Maki had done her best to keep her main focus on getting back to the castle, but she often found herself drifting back to that night in the inn. She closed her eyes as she began to recall it again.

"You really expect me to just believe all of this?!" Maki says incredulously. The other girl in the room is quiet, her arms crossed.

"It doesn't matter if you do or not." She replies coolly. "But it's the truth. I can't willingly do this without someone I can trust knowing too."

The sentence hits Maki like an arrow in her chest. Her gaze has fallen to Nico, who had been staring at Maki the whole time. She was observing her reaction, Maki could tell that for sure. Maki stayed quiet for a moment as she continued to stare at Nico's determined gaze.

"What makes you think you can trust me?" her voice is soft as she asks Nico this.

"You're a knight, aren't you?" is her reply. "I have no reason not to trust you."

Maki lifts her hand, taking a bit of her hair and twirling it. It was a small habit of hers she did when she found herself unable to respond to things right away. This stranger blindly trusted her all because she was a knight, and the fact she had been so upfront and honest about it made Maki feel a bit nervous somehow. Maki thought to herself in that moment that if Nico could trust her from just these facts alone, then she would do her best to prove to her that she didn't need to doubt the trust she put in her.

"Besides," Nico continues. "Nozomi's cards told me that I should." Maki gives her a skeptical gaze and Nico shrugs. The red haired girl sighs, letting go of the strands of hair before letting her hand fall to her side.

"I have no reason not to believe you, Nico." She says eventually and Nico's eyes light up. "You can trust me. I won't tell a soul."

It had been days since then, and yet Maki couldn't stop lingering on the memory. True to her word, Maki didn't show any signs of knowing anything about what Nico had told her in that room the next day. It was as if their conversation had never happened at all. Maki opened her eyes, and for the umpteenth time that day Maki's gaze found its way over to Nico. This didn't go unnoticed, and Nozomi grins.

"There's something oddly charming about her, isn't there?" Maki jumps at the sound of Nozomi's voice. Nozomi laughs lightly, apologizing for startling her.

"I guess so." Maki answers.

"But…?" Nozomi asks, and Maki turns to face her.

"Well, to be honest, I just can't stop wondering how the shortest one of us is able to ride the tallest horse here with no problems." Nozomi laughs again, louder this time. Nico frowns as she looks over at them.

"Hey! He's apart of my family, of course he'll listen to me fine!" She defends, petting the dark horse's neck. "Isn't that right Kuro?" He lets out a small snort in response, causing Nozomi to laugh more and a small smirk forming on Maki's lips.

"Either way, you look like a little kid sitting on top of him." She jabs. Nozomi's laughter continues, a hand covering her mouth as if trying to stifle the loud giggles. "Nozomi-san seems to agree with." Nico's pout is large as she looks over to her hooded friend.

"Nooozoomiiii!" She drones out, and the violet haired girl just smiles at her.

"Aww, Niccochi! It's all in good fun. Don't take it to heart" She lets her gaze fall on Maki, her smile still on her lips. "Nishikino-san, you can just call me Nozomi if you'd like."

Maki blinks surprised, turning her gaze away to and raising her hand to play with her hair a bit.

"A-Alright," she pauses, glancing shyly towards the other girl before mumbling quietly. "Nozomi." she can't hide her small smile as she see's Nozomi's grin widen at the sound of it.

"You can feel free to call me Maki." she continues, then glances in the direction Nico's in. "But you can't Nico." she throws in teasingly, earning a grumble from said girl and another laugh from Nozomi. It was evident the group had become a lot friendlier with each other through the course of the trip, and Maki found herself enjoying it. She hoped that there would be a chance they would be staying at the castle for a bit, knowing that the two girls would get along great with her friends as well.

The trees begin to thin and the exit is near. After many days and nights traveling, their destination finally comes into view. Maki pulls Santa to a stop, admiring the view of the castle and town from the forests exit. Nico and Nozomi stop beside her, and a small breeze blows through as all three of them stare at the Otonokizaka castle town in the not so far away distance. Maki smiles, looking at the girls on either side of her.

"There it is." She says, sighing relieved. "Are you excited to finally be here, Nozomi?" she asks, turning her attention to her.

"Mhm." she hums. Maki glances to Nico, whose expression is relaxed. Like an enormous weight had been lifted off of her shoulders. Maki can only assume it's because they'll finally be able to take a break from traveling.

In a flash of movements, Nozomi suddenly gets her horse to dash, her laugh the only sound Maki and Nico hear as she dashes forward.

"Nozomi!" Nico calls out. "Wait for us!" She's grinning as she gets her steed to follow, Maki following not far behind.

It soon became a race, Nozomi and Nico's eyes reflecting the same glint of determination to win. Maki can't help but be sucked into the competitive feeling, wanting to win with every fiber of her being and forgetting momentarily that she's on a job. She encourages her horse to move faster, her smile growing as she passes Nico. Their horses race past a tall tower that's a good distance from the castle town, their hooves pounding heavily into the dirt.

From the direction of the tower, a loud horn sounds. Nozomi immediately pulls the reins on her horse, Nico following suit. The horses come to a complete stop beside one another, and Nico's horse snorts displeased. Maki too, pulls on Santa's reins and looks back surprised. She hadn't expected anyone to be in the tower, and her smile only grows more as the realization of what the horn meant hits 's eyes worriedly meet Maki's happy ones, and Maki smiles at her.

"That's the watchtower. There's one placed not too far from every main exit of the castle town." Maki explains. "They're normally not put to use unless the Queen is traveling or there's a threat to the kingdom."

"So why is there people in it now?" Nico interrupts, wanting Maki to get to the point.

"The Captain must have decided to put scouts on watch for us when she received the letter from my raven." Maki responds, and brings her horse into a slow walk. "Come on, we're not much farther now. Everyone knows we've arrived!"

Nico adjusts her hood, before glancing over to Nozomi. Nozomi pulls her hood tighter around herself, making sure her face is completely hidden again. When both girls are ready, they begin to follow Maki towards the castle.

The walk is quiet and the sound of the horn had attracted many of the villagers out of their homes to see who had arrived. Many were uninterested and retreated back into their homes upon seeing who it was, but there were a lot who began to whisper amongst each other at the sight of them. Maki payed them no mind as the castle gates soon came into view. She brought her horse to a complete stop, shading her eyes from the sun with a hand as she glanced up to the top of the gates wall.

"Welcome back, Nishikino-san!" A brunette with a pony tail calls down from the top of the wall. Maki nods up to her.

"Thank you, Fumiko! Could you open the gate for us, please?" She shouts. The brunette grins down at her, before turning and shouting a command to open the gate, and the loud creaking of the castle's gates opening begin.

Nozomi's horse shakes its head from the sudden noise, taking a couple steps backward. She reaches over and pets it soothingly as she watches the gates slowly open wider and wider. Nico's horse mimics, taking a few steps backward.

The gates are soon completely open, and Maki gestures for the two girls to follow her inside to the front courtyard. Their horses take slow steps, and Nozomi casts her gaze downward toward the ground.

Maki took in the slightly different appearance of the front courtyard, the gardens full of budding flowers and growing plants. The work the castle staff had put into the gardens certainly did show, and she quickly dismounts her horse as soon as they enter the grounds. Another shout is heard from Fumiko, and the gate begins to close behind them. Nico soon dismounts as well, slipping her hood down and glancing around the beautiful gardens and shrubbery.

"MAKI-CHAN!" the loud cry startles the trio, who whip their heads around to the source of the sound. Maki's surprise soon becomes a happy smile as she watches her favourite oranged haired girl run towards them at full speed. She takes a couple steps away from her horse and towards Rin, who quickly comess to a stop in front of her.

"WELCOME HOME!" Rin announces, pulling Maki into a tight hug. Maki's eyes widen in embarrassment as she quickly sputters out Rin's name in surprise. She tries to ignore the red tint of her cheeks. Rin soon pulls away, laughing lightly.

"Everyone is waiting for you in the courtroom, Maki-chan! Here, I'll take Santa back to the stable." She grins, and Maki sighs a bit, a small smile planting itself back on her face.

"Would you mind taking these two to the stable as well?" Maki gestures to the other two horses, and for the first time since they had been back, Rin finally notices the guests.

"Oh course!" She says immediately, smiling towards Nico and Nozomi. "I'll happily get them to the stable too!"

Maki thanks her, watching as Nico helps Nozomi dismount her horse. Rin takes hold of their reins, and soon she makes her way out of sight with the three horses. Maki turns her attention to the duo next to her, and instructs them to follow her inside. Wordlessly, the two girls follow Maki up the steps, through doors and into the large castle.

All girls are quiet as Maki leads them down the short corridor. The deep red carpet leading all the way to another set of doors. Those doors would lead them into the courtroom, where everyone was waiting for them. Maki keeps facing forward as she determinedly leads the other two towards them. Nico and Nozomi are only steps behind her, not bothering to take in the scenery and focusing on following her.

As they reach the doors, Maki feels a twinge of nervousness creep into her. She gives a glance to the side, her eyes quickly locking with Nico's. Nico's gaze reflects the determination Maki had felt only moments earlier, and the twin tailed girl nods towards Maki. Maki finds herself nodding back, then spares a glance to Nozomi. Her hood is still around her face, but Maki can feel her eyes watching her. She gives a small nod to her as well, before turning and lifting the handle to the door. With a gentle push, she nudges open the door ever so slightly, causing the guards on the other side to take hold of the handles and pull the doors open for them.

Light floods into the hallway, and Maki steps inside the giant illuminated room. The red carpet continued onward, becoming a path from the doors to the thrones at the other side of the room. Along the side of the courtroom are a few noblemen and women, along with a number of castle workers. At the end of the carpet and a few steps up was the Queen and Princess, sitting atop their thrones and watching Maki as she marches towards them. To Kotori's right stands Hanayo, smiling softly. Not far off from her are Honoka and Umi, bright smiles on their faces as well. To the Queen's left, stood Captain Eli herself. Her lips turned up in a slight smile and her eyes reflecting the pride she felt seeing as she watched Maki step towards them.

Maki soon comes to a halt just before the stairs that lead up to the thrones. She doesn't need to glance to her sides to know that Nozomi and Nico had followed her, and without hesitation all three of them kneel in front of the Queen and Princess. The silence in the courtroom is soon broken by the Queen.

"Welcome back, Nishikino Maki." She states.

"Thank you, your Majesty." Maki replies. The Queen tells her to rise, and Maki soon pushes herself up off the ground. Queen Minami's smile is warm and Maki can feel her chest swelling with happiness. She had completed her first mission successfully, and she had never felt more proud of herself than in this moment. Maki's eyes land on Eli, who has turned her attention to the people she brought. Her expression is blank now, the small smile she had earlier gone. Her thoughts are interrupted by the Queen's voice.

"Please give us the details of your quest, Nishikino-san." The Queen requests. Maki stands straighter.

"Of course, your Majesty." She responds. Maki then clears her throat, her voice now clear as she speaks again. "The mission went just as planned for the first week and a half. I entered the Akiba Kingdom in the estimated time I would have."

"Not too far into the Kingdom I found myself in a village that hadn't been marked on my map. It wasn't long before I learnt our maps are outdated, and I had found myself in village that was supposedly only founded a few months before I arrived. It was there that I met Yazawa Nico-" Maki gives a small gesture to where Nico knelt. "and I had asked her about directions to the castle town."

"Yazawa-san insisted she wasn't sure how to get there, but informed me that she knew someone who could. She then lead me to her comrade just outside of the village. What I expected was simple directions out of the village and towards the castle town." Maki pauses a bit, before continuing, her voice not once faltering. "Instead I found the person I was sent to search for."

There's a quiet pause in the courtroom, many pairs of eyes watching the pair that kneeled not too far behind Maki. Maki resisted the urge to look at them as she concluded her speech.

"After confirming it was indeed her, I sent my raven and we made our way back here as quickly as possible."

The Queen finally removes her gaze from Maki and lets it land on the two girls that stood behind her.

"Thank you for your hard work, Nishikino-san." She smiles at her. "You may take as much resting time as you see fit to recuperate from your journey." Maki quickly thanks the Queen, bowing her head and stepping off to the side that Eli stood. Now that the debriefing was over, she knew the Queen would want to speak with the guests she had brought back with her.

The Queen rises slowly from her throne, descending the steps until she's in front of the completely hooded girl. Eli, who had been observing with keen eyes brought a hand to her sword. She would be ready to strike should anything happen.

"You both may rise." The Queen announces, and the two girls in front of her slowly stand up from their knees. She smiles towards Nico, who bows her head slightly. The ash haired woman then turns to the second girl, her smile soft.

"You may remove your hood. You are safe here." Her voice is tender as she speaks.

Eli tenses slightly, her hand gripping onto her sword tighter as she watches the unfamiliar girl lift her hands slowly, grabbing either sides of her hood. She watches as careful hands pull it down, finally revealing the face hidden beneath it. Small gasps sound throughout the court, one of them coming from the Princess herself. The girl looks up towards the Queen, a small smile on her lips.

Eli's once tense hand opens up, her suspicious gaze becoming a wide eyed stare. She was caught completely off guard, not expecting to see such a young girl revealing herself from the dark cloak. She lets her hand drop to her side as she continues to stare. Maki glances towards her captain, immediately noticing the surprised reaction on her face. She quickly glances back to the Queen, positive her captain would never forgive her if she knew she saw her gaping like that.

The Queen smiles brighter as Nozomi reveals herself to the court. She speaks, her voice still as soft as it had been before.

"You've grown since I last saw you." Nozomi's smile grows slightly.

"It has been quite a few years, your Majesty." She replies. The Queen nods in agreement.

"I take it your journey was safe then?" She asks.

"There were a few bumps along the way." the violet haired girl confesses. "Once we met up with Maki, it became a lot easier."

"P-Pardon my intrusion." Nico stutters, catching the attention of both Nozomi and the Queen. "I, erm, I believe this isn't the best place to discuss this." Nozomi gives Nico an apologetic smile, before turning her attention back to the Queen. The Queen smiles a bit.

"I believe you're right, Yazawa-san. We can discuss this further in my quarters." She turns towards Eli, who immediately composes herself again upon noticing the Queen's attention was on her.

"Captain, would you mind leading us to my quarters? We have much to discuss and I'd prefer it to be in the private setting there."

"Of course, your Majesty." Eli bows her head, getting ready to lead the trio to the room. Before she can take a step, the Queen continues speaking.

"Kotori?"

The Princess sits up a bit, looking to her mother.

"Y-yes?"

"I'm sorry to take up more of your time, but I would appreciate if you sat in on this with me." The Queen smiles towards her daughter, who stands up.

"Of course!" She replies, stepping down the steps to her mother.

Eli soon begins leading the small group out of the courtroom and into the direction of the Queen's quarters. The Queen and Kotori walked a few paces behind Eli. Behind them, Nozomi and Nico followed. Bringing up the rear of the group were Maki, Umi, Honoka and Hanayo. Rin, who had been heading straight towards the courtroom, saw the group making their way down the hall, and decided to join them. They all quietly make their way towards the Queen's room. Once they had arrived, Eli opens the door to the empty room.

"Thank you, Captain." The Queen smiles at her. "We may be a while, but I'd appreciate if you would stay out here until we are done, to ensure we aren't disturbed."

"I will, your Majesty." Eli says, before glancing towards the rest of the group. Kotori looks towards her guards, smiling apologetically.

"Sorry Umi-chan, Honoka-chan. You both don't need to wait for me, I can find you when this is done." She apologizes to them, before turning Hanayo "Hanayo-chan, you're dismissed from any duties you have with me today. You can spend the time with Maki-chan if you'd like." The trio share a glance before Honoka smiles.

"We don't mind waiting with the Captain." Honoka says, Umi nodding in agreement. Hanayo quietly speaks up as well.

"T-thank you Princess. I think I'd like to take that offer." She looks at Maki, who simply smiles. Rin grins towards her friends, declaring she'd like to spend time with them too. She glances at Umi for approval, and Umi agrees, letting Rin have time to spend with Maki and Hanayo.

The Queen soon makes her way inside, Kotori, Nozomi and Nico following. Eli shuts the door behind the four of them, before turning to the small group that stood outside the doors with her. Honoka and Umi stand next to Eli on the other side of the door, while across from them Rin, Hanayo and Maki stand.

"Great work, Maki." Eli comments, her smile returning. Maki smiles a bit.

"Thank you, Captain." she responds, happy to be in the company of her friends.

"How did you know she was the right person?" Honoka asks, a bit excitedly.

"I would have assumed she was a criminal by the way she kept herself hidden." Umi remarks.

Maki twirls a bit of her hair, not meeting the eyes of anyone.

"I was skeptical at first, but she looks almost identical to the drawing I was given. Not to mention she confirmed her name was the same and that she had written the letter to our Queen. Part of me second guessed myself along the way, but seeing how the Queen reacted made me forget all of the uncertain thoughts I had."

"I thought your mission was to only bring back one person though." Eli's brows furrow a bit as she thinks. "Is there a reason there were two girls?"

Before Maki can respond, Honoka speaks up.

"Maki-chan, didn't you say that she brought you to the girl you were looking for?"

"Ah, yeah. They were traveling together." Maki replies. "They're good friends, and I'm sure Nico just wanted to make sure Nozomi got here safely." The other girls fall silent, taking Maki's answer as a good explanation for it.

Maki soon decides to excuse herself, deciding to head to her room for a nap before dinner. Rin and Hanayo decide to join her, and the three girls make their way down the steps. Rin's voice is the only thing heard in the distance as she bombards Maki with many questions about her journey during the past few weeks. This left just Eli, Umi and Honoka, who stood in silence as they waited for Kotori and the Queen to finish their business.

Almost an hour goes by before the door finally opens. Honoka and Umi are the first to turn around, seeing Kotori in the doorway. She smiles at them, before looking to Eli.

"Captain, the Queen would like to see you!" She beams, and Eli nods. She shares a look with Umi before stepping inside the room, and Kotori smiles apologetically at the two of them before closing the door again.

The Queen is sitting in her chair behind her elegant table. Kotori takes a seat by the side of the room, where the two unfamiliar girls stood on the left side of it. Eli keeps her eyes forward, not letting her curiosity about the two new girls show. The Queen smiles at her.

"Captain." she greets, and Eli bows her head.

"You asked for me, your Majesty?" Eli says, before lifting her gaze back up. the Queen's smile soon falters, and her gaze becomes serious.

"It would seem that we are currently in a situation far more grave than I had first thought, Captain. Our kingdom could be in danger." Eli's eyes widen slightly, her expression soon becoming serious like the Queen's.

"Say no more, your Majesty." Eli begins immediately "I'll do absolutely anything it takes to protect you and the people of Otonokizaka."

Kotori covers her mouth to prevent any noise from escaping, and the Queen simply quirks an eyebrow upward. Nico turns away, trying hard to prevent any stray sounds from escaping her lips as well. Nozomi is quiet as she watches with curious eyes.

"Captain, you're just going to agree without hearing or considering the conditions?" There's a hint of amusement in Queen Minami's voice and Eli confirms it with a swift movement of her head.

"No task is too hard for me, your Majesty. I can take care of anything, or assemble the perfect team to help complete the task. All I need is a bit of preparation time."

A few laughs arise from Nico, and Nozomi quickly shushes her. Eli ignores them, keeping her eyes on the woman in front of her.

"Captain," Kotori begins. "You should really listen to the exact situation before making this decision." Eli turns to the Princess.

"Even so, I'm sure you both know that my answer will be the same. I would die if it meant helping the kingdom and its people." She replies, and Kotori glances towards her mother. She has an amused smile on her face, and she leans forward on the table in front of her.

"What about getting married?" She asks.

Eli opens her mouth to respond,but as she processes what the Queen says, the only word that escapes her lips is a firm "What?!"

Nico laughs out loud, and this time Nozomi elbows her roughly in the side. She coughs, covering her mouth to try and stifle any more noises she might make. Nozomi turns her attention back to the blonde, a small amused smile on her lips. Kotori covers her mouth again, her body shaking slightly as she also tries to hold back her giggles. Eli can feel her face heating up and she puts her face into her hands, unable to believe the informal response that had come from her. She takes a deep breath, before removing her face from them and looking back to the Queen.

"Could you please repeat that, your Majesty?" she asks quietly. The Queen's smile grows bigger, and she repeats herself.

"Would you get married to help your kingdom?"

Eli's gaze quickly finds its way to the ground. How would a marriage between the captain of her knights and someone keep Otonokizaka safe from any threats? Was it a new formal way of uniting two armies together? Eli knew that there were not very many nobles among their kingdom, and the Princess most likely voiced her disinterest about being in a political marriage. Her eyes stay focused on the floor before she speaks in a quieter voice.

"If you don't mind, may I know the reasons why a marriage between me and someone else would help the Kingdom? I'd just like to understand it better." The Queen stands up from her seat, speaking as she makes her way toward Eli.

"Ever since the new King of Akiba has taken over, there has been quite a bit of tension between our two kingdoms. So much, that I fear an unnecessary war might break out." The Queen's expression is solemn. "Our countries have been free of war for almost fifty years. I would hate for another war to begin for no reason."

Eli had been listening intently, her eyebrows furrowing as the Queen falls silent.

"And me getting married will prevent this?" She questions. Queen Minami smiles slightly.

"Well, if we get technical you won't actually be married." Eli's body floods with relief, but more questions begin to form. Before she can voice any of them, the Queen gestures to the other girls.

"The only people who will know the truth is everyone in this room. Everyone else must believe that a wedding happened and that you have gotten married to a noble from the Akiba kingdom. With a union like this between Otonokizaka and Akiba, it keeps us in an alliance and safe from going to war with each other."

Eli suddenly understands what the Queen means, and she relaxes a bit more. She lifts a hand to her chin, pondering the choice she should make.

"Well," she begins after a moment of thought. "It isn't an actual marriage, but it's all for the sake of the kingdom, right?" she inquires, and the Queen nods.

"I'll do it then."

Off to the side, Nico chokes, unable to believe what she had just heard. Kotori pats her back as she sputters to catch her breath, and Eli finally looks over to the group of girls off to the side. Her attention is mostly on Nico, and she takes the few steps towards them.

"Are you the one I'm supposed to 'marry'?" She asks, her eyes looking over Nico's tiny frame as she tries to compose herself. Nico's mouth falls open and one of her eye twitches slightly. Her reply is cut off by an outburst of laughter from the girl next to her, and Nico quickly turns her head away, sending a glare towards her. Eli also turns her way, slightly confused about why she would be laughing.

Her hands are on her sides as she leans over, unable to stop the loud bout of laughter. Nico and Eli's expressions both soften as they watch the violet haired girl try to get ahold of herself, her laughter slowly dying and her hands raising to wipe the tears that now formed at the sides of her eyes.

"S-sorry Nicocchi!" she giggles, a bright smile making its way to her face. Nico mumbles something along the lines of 'it's fine.' Nozomi turns to Eli, her smile reaching her eyes as she takes a step towards her.

"I'll be the one you're marrying." She says, bowing slightly. "My name is Nozomi, please take good care of me."

Eli is a bit taken aback, but she nods.

"Ayase Eli." she responds. "I, uhm, I will be in your care as well, Nozomi."

For the first time, Eli and Nozomi's eyes meet. Vibrant green and vivid light blue don't dare stray from each other, and Eli can't help but notice the small twinkles that shimmer as they continue to stare. They're interrupted by Nico's voice as she asks the Queen a question.

"Since we've established that these two will be married, is there going to be a ceremony of some sorts?" Kotori's claps her hands together, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

"Of course!" She declares. "It'll be more believable if we hold a ceremony! We can host it in the garden!"

"Well, why don't you arrange it then, Kotori?" The Queen asks, and Kotori's smile widens.

"I would love to! Just give me a couple days and we'll be able to do it!" she responds happily, catching Nozomi's attention immediately.

"Eh? that soon?!" She asks.

"Of course!" Nico answers. "The sooner it happens, the better." Kotori hums in agreement with her. Queen Minami smiles fondly in their direction, before speaking.

"I've been thinking about what we should do with you as well, Yazawa-san." The four girls look over to the Queen, who looks towards Eli.

"Captain, would you consider adding Yazawa-san to your squad?" Eli frowns a bit at the sudden question.

"My squad?" She repeats. The Queen says nothing as she stares, and Eli considers it. Her squad was made up of all the girls she saw fit for it. The four girls that made up the squad had all impressed Eli with some feature of theirs, and even then only two of them were almost as capable as she was. Her eyes fall onto the shorter girl, who was focusing on the wall to distract herself from the upcoming answer.

"In order to get into my squad, I'd have to see Yazawa-sans skills as a knight. If she meets the qualifications, then I see no problem in fitting her in." Eli finally says.

"Seems reasonable to me. What do you think, Yazawa-san?" the Queen asks Nico. Nico turns her attention to them.

"I think it is too, your Majesty."

"Perfect." The older woman smiles a bit. "I'll leave arranging that to you, Captain."

"Yes, your Majesty." She bows her head.

"I believe we're all done here then." the Queen states as she walks back to her seat. "Kotori, I'd like you to help arrange where Nozomi and Yazawa-san will stay, if you could."

"Okay!" she replies, looking to Nozomi and Nico with a small smile.

The four girls excuse themselves, Eli walking over to the door and opening it. Honoka and Umi turn around, greeting the Princess as she exits. Nico follows,not far behind, and Nozomi smiles slightly towards Eli, saying a small thank you as she exits. Eli nods to her, shutting the door behind her as she finally exits as well.

A few words are shared between the girls, and Honoka joins Kotori in the adventure to locate available rooms for the two of them. They walk away, leaving Eli and Umi to themselves. Eli's gaze lingers on the back of Nozomi, letting her mind wander with curious thoughts about the mysterious girl that she was to 'marry'.


	4. Let's be Friends

**AN** : Hey everybody! This is the last of the daily updates, as I've caught up on uploading the chapters of it here now. From here on out they'll be uploaded as I finish them! Thank you as always for reading and all of your wonderful reviews, I'll do my best to reply to them all :!

* * *

The following day, Eli held a meeting in her quarters between herself, Maki and Umi. Keeping what the Queen had said in mind, she relayed the story to them. She explained the marriage was all political and meant to keep the kingdom safe from threats of war, but even then it unsettled the blue and red haired knights. The former girls arms were crossed as Eli dug through her clothes, looking for a specific uniform she had worn the day she became captain.

"Captain, how could you just agree to get married like that?" Umi asks. "You do understand how reckless that was, right?"

"I have to agree, Captain." Maki adds, watching as she rummages through her dresser drawers. "You're going to marry someone you know little to nothing about-"

"-To save our kingdom" Eli turns towards the both of them, pausing her actions to look them both in the eyes. "Listen, I understand completely that this decision seems rash and may not have been thought through enough. Do you think the Queen herself would suggest something like this to me without considering it seriously herself?" She questioned the both of them and awaited an answer. Both Umi and Maki were quiet.

"Look, girls." Eli sighs, turning back to her dresser. "I was skeptical at first too. I thought it was a ludicrous idea, but her Majesty thinks this is the best option. If the state between our countries is this bad and the only way to fix it is by marriage, then I happily consent. Oh! Here it is!" She pulls a long sleeved shirt out of her drawers, smiling to herself before turning back to the other two.

Umi's face had softened, but her serious expression still rested on her features. Maki had pursed her lips, waiting for more to be said. The blonde can tell what they want to voice, and she just shakes her head, smiling lightly.

"You both know better than anyone else that I'm not losing anything here. I have no close relationships with anyone, aside from you two. I don't have a lover, and there isn't anyone I'd have in mind either. While I did imagine getting married wouldn't happen til later in my life, I'm not upset by the choice I'm making now. Both of us have agreed to do it for our kingdoms, and everything will be fine." She hangs the light blue top over a chair in the corner of her room, before going back to the dresser to find its matching pants.

Maki twirls her hair absentmindedly between two of her fingers, staring at the fireplace across the room and gazing at the soot with a bored gaze. Sure, Eli says she's okay with going into a political marriage, but both Maki and Umi knew that was only because Eli had never bothered to form any sort of friendship outside of work. They knew if she had, this situation might have played out a lot differently.

"On another note," Eli says as she pulls out a pair of blue pants from her dresser. "This will be a good opportunity for us to do some investigating." Amber eyes meet amethyst before looking back over to their leader.

"Investigating?" Umi asks. "What do you mean?"

"To put it simply, I don't trust these two new girls either. The Queen might, but I'm still wary. By getting married to the one girl, Nozomi, I might be able to learn her intentions here. If her true purpose of being here is not to unite our kingdoms, but to bring ours down, then I'll kill both her and her friend myself." Her gaze is dark and cold, and Maki can feel a small chill go up her spine. She glances to the floor, thinking over what Eli had said.

"And what about her friend? Is she becoming a member of the castle staff?" the navy haired knight asked, leaning back against the door. Eli scoffs a bit, now looking over a pair of gloves.

"Queen Minami asked me to add her to the squad." Her tone is annoyed, and Maki immediately glances up from the floor to her.

"Our squad?!" she speaks, and Eli glances her way.

"That's right" She confirms. "The Queen wants the other girl, Yazawa Nico to be apart of the squad. I told her the only way that will happen is if I get to see first hand what her skill is like, so a sparring match will be arranged." Her eyes fall to Maki. "Were you able to get an idea of what her skills are like during your journey, Maki?" Maki thinks for a moment, before speaking.

"The trip back was rather smooth, I wouldn't know anything about how well she is in combat." the redhead gives her a small shrug. Eli frowns a bit and places the gloves down on the small pile of clothes she now had.

"My wedding ceremony is supposed to be tomorrow evening. Before then, I want to watch one of you to fight against her in a spar." she turns her attention to the both of them. "It doesn't matter to me which one of you does it, but the person who sits out will be monitoring the spar with me."

"Why not Maki then?" Umi suggests. She smiles as she looks at Maki. "Your sword skills are incredible, and with my keen eyes it'd be better if I were on the side watching with Captain Eli."

Maki sighs tiredly as she thinks it over. If both the Captain and Umi thought this, then that's just something she'd have to do. She nodded, agreeing that she would be Nico's opponent. Eli thanks her, then goes on with the finer details.

The spar would take place tomorrow afternoon, with the wedding happening right afterwards. Between now and then there would be little time for Maki to practice her skills to make sure she was even prepared for a spar. If the match wasn't until late afternoon, there would be a chance she could squeeze in a bit of time on a training dummy. With that in mind she tuned back into Eli and Umi's conversation, listening as they discussed what would happen should Nico make the cut and find herself a place in her squad.

"I'll know for sure tomorrow where she'll go when I see her skills, but I think it's appropriate we place her under one of us. This way she might always be monitored. " Eli said as grabbed the clothes she had picked out before. She stepped behind a royal blue screen, not caring that those two were present while she began changing.

"I agree," Umi says, glancing away from the screen to be polite. "We could easily make her a scout with Rin. Rin might enjoy the company on her tasks." Both Maki and Eli agree, and seconds later Eli reappears from behind the changing screen, adjusting her wrist cuffs on her new attire.

The blonde haired girl stood clad in the fanciest uniform she owned. It had been tailored by the princess herself, as a gift to congratulate her on her promotion to captain. It was very simple, a plain pastel blue with faded gold trim, faded gold cuffs, and a pair of pants that matched. Eli looked so formal that anyone who didn't know her may have mistaken her for royalty. She walked over to the side of her dresser, slipping on her nicest pair of boots and looking over to the other two, who watched her with confused stares.

"Well? How do I look?" She voices, lifting her arms a bit and waiting for a response from her right hand girls. Maki and Umi share a glance, a bit hesitant to answer.

"You look very handsome, Captain." Umi finally says. "Is that what you plan to wear to the wedding?" Eli nods.

"Since the princess wanted us to do a rehearsal today, I figured I might as well wear what I planned to wear." Eli begins to play with the cuffs on her sleeves again, adjusting them so that they were even. Maki raises an eyebrow.

"You're going to wear that to the rehearsal?" She asks. Eli mimics her expression.

"Well, yes. Why wouldn't I? If we're doing a run through of the ceremony, isn't it appropriate I wear what I plan to get married in?" Maki opens her mouth to respond, but quickly closes it, contemplating her reply.

"Well, you're not wrong." She sighs. Umi's face is neutral, but Maki could see a hint of amusement in her eyes. Eli soon slips her sheathed sword onto her belt, before grabbing her gloves.

"Lets head out to the garden, everyone should be there shortly." She instructs, slipping on her gloves. The other two nod in agreement, following Eli out of her room and into the hallway.

The trio walked in silence towards the castle gardens, where Kotori insisted they hosted the ceremony. It was late April, many flowers were only now starting to form buds and closed blossoms, but Kotori said it would be beautiful nonetheless. Eli had no idea how Kotori would be able to plan a ceremony like that in only a couple days but she knew that if anyone could do it, it had to be Kotori.

They continued their pace down the halls in silence, passing maids cleaning and greeting other guards with small nods of acknowledgement. Many stared after them, curious about Eli's attire but not saying a word about it. Maki could feel their gazes lingering and hear the hushed whispers some said to each other, commenting on how 'the captain looks very formal today!' or 'Something really important must be happening!' Maki resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Many members of the castle were quick to spread rumours rather than ask what might be going on. In the end, it wouldn't matter. The wedding was tomorrow, everyone who wasn't involved in the preparations for it would learn when the ceremony happens right on the castle grounds.

The three girls exit the castle into the garden entrance, walking down the decorated path towards the gazebo. The gazebo itself was a large structure that the Queen and Princess enjoyed to relax in during spring and summer days. When hosting events, the Queen would often bring her guests there to relax and enjoy the various plants and flowers that were in bloom. Otonokizaka's castle had been known by its neighbouring kingdoms for having one of the most beautifully decorated gardens, and it really showed. As they made their way towards the end of the path, the excited voices of Honoka and Rin were the only things that could be heard.

"So you're gunna be on the squad too!?" Rin exclaimed. "That'll be fun! More friends!"

"You must be really skilled if the Queen wants you to be apart of our squad! I wanna fight you one day!" Honoka adds.

As the trio enter, they notice the only ones present are the two loud girls and Nico. By the sounds of it, Nico had told them of the plan that was supposed to happen. At the sound of people arriving, both Rin and Honoka turn their attention to the entrance, standing straight immediately.

"Good afternoon, Captain!" They chorus. Nico stands upright, adding in a late greeting of her own. Eli nod to them all.

"Afternoon girls. Where's the princess?" She asks, glancing around.

"Princess Kotori, Nozomi-san and Kayo-chin will be here soon!" Rin announces. "The Princess wanted to see about rings for tomorrows ceremony." Her eyes look over Eli and her lips quirk up a bit in a smile. "Unless, its supposed to be today, nya?" Her gaze is mischievous and Eli shakes her head.

"No, the ceremony is still tomorrow." Eli replies. "Looks like we'll just have to wait then."

"Ooooh, it looks like the captains really serious about this Rin-chan!" Honoka observes Eli's attire as well, a grin growing on her face.

"Mhm!" Rin replies to Honoka. "The Captains presentation is important of course!" In the background Nico has looked away, a hand covering her mouth to stifle her giggles.

Eli can feel her face heat up a bit, taking another look over her clothes. Maybe she had overdressed for the rehearsal? She glances to Maki, who stood off to the side watching the three that had been there before they arrived. Feeling Eli's gaze, Maki looked over to her and gave a small shrug before mouthing "told you so.". She glances away quickly, starting to regret her choice in clothing for that moment.

"Maybe I still have time to go change." She mumbles. Nico's body begins to shake more, trying to contain any laughter from leaving her body. Eli closes her eyes upon noticing Nico and her eyebrows furrowing slightly

"Alright, okay. I'm going to change." She says quickly, turning around to head back the way she had came from. Before she can even step out of the gazebo, hurried foot steps are heard and Hanayo appears before them, slightly out of breath.

"O-oh good! It looks like you're already here, Captain." She smiles up to her. Rin shouts a happy greeting, waving enthusiastically towards her from behind the captain. Hanayo peers over, smiling more as she notices everyone else there as well. "Did we keep you all waiting?" she asks a bit worriedly.

"Oh! Er, no. Maki, Umi and I just arrived as well." The blonde responds, slumping a bit defeatedly. So much for changing.

It was then that Kotori and Nozomi stepped into view, and Kotori gasps.

"Ah! Sorry if we kept you all waiting long! We got a bit distracted on the way here." She apologizes. She smiles as she looks over Eli, and Eli can feel her face heating up more as she notices Nozomi is wearing the same clothes she had been yesterday.

"You look quite dashing, Captain~" The princess compliments, stepping up beside her and smiling. Eli blushes more.

"Thank you, Princess." Eli says. "I, uh, I didn't really realize just how over the top it'd be if only I showed up this way. I apologize." she says quickly, bowing her head slightly. The taller girl laughs lightly, smiling warmly at her.

"I think it suits you, Captain" Nozomi adds, walking over to her with a small smile of her own. "Don't worry about feeling out of place, I'll match you tomorrow during the real ceremony." She winks, and Eli finds herself staring a bit as Nozomi walks past her, Kotori following.

Kotori takes her place between Umi and Honoka, greeting them happily. Everyone gets settled underneath the gazebo, and Kotori goes over the plans for how the ceremony will go down. During her brief explanation, Eli finds herself stealing glances over to Nozomi. Nozomi's full attention is on Kotori, her eyes not leaving as she takes in every detail of whats supposed to happen. Eli watches her for a bit, before Nozomi's eyes soon glance towards her. They lock briefly before Eli looks away, closing her eyes and slightly embarrassed that she got caught. Nozomi smiles lightly, her eyes going back over to Kotori.

After guiding them through a quick run through, Nozomi and Eli practice the things they need to say. Both girls don't falter, getting all the words right. Kotori claps a bit, impressed by the time its all over. The other girls give a small bit of applause as the two turn to face them like they will at the end of tomorrows ceremony. Nozomi smiles lightly, and Eli feels a bit proud that the practice run went well. Before they all disperse, Eli calls out to Nico.

"Yazawa-san, about the spar." She begins, and Nico turns her full attention to Eli.

"Yes?" She responds, not once looking away from Eli.

"It will be tomorrow afternoon, and your opponent will be Maki." Eli gestures to the red head, who walked over at the sound of her name. "We'll discuss spar rules tomorrow, but I expect you'll be prepared for anything."

"Of course, Captain." the black haired girl replies. "Since I have no plans for the evening, is there anywhere I could maybe practice?" she asks immediately. Eli nods

"We have a training hut, Maki can show you it and you both can get in some training time if you'd like."

Nico shares a look with Maki, before thanking Eli. They both excuse themselves from the group, Maki leading Nico out of the gazebo and back down the garden path. Hanayo and Rin excuse themselves shortly after, saying they needed to make their way to the stables for stable duty. Eli takes this as her opportunity to get back to work, and so begins to excuse herself to do her rounds.

"Do you mind if I join you, Captain?" Nozomi asks suddenly. Eli thinks about it briefly, before agreeing. She had no reason to say no, and since it was just rounds around the castle she knew there wouldn't be much she'd be intruding on.

Both girls exit the gardens and walk back into the castle quietly, and Eli begins walking down the long corridor. They walk side by side, Nozomi taking in the decorations on the walls and Eli finding herself stealing glances at her here and there. She didn't know what to make of this girl, as she wasn't very easy to read. Eli knew she'd have to give it some time, but there had to be a way to read the mysterious girl.

"You know you're not very discreet, Captain." Nozomi suddenly says, and Eli blinks surprised. The shorter girl turns to face her, a playful smile on her lips. "I can tell you've been staring at me this whole time."

The taller of the two quickly turns away, slightly embarrassed. Eli generally wasn't obvious with her staring, but maybe she hadn't realized just how often she had been looking at her. She mumbles a small apology, taking a couple steps ahead so that the other girl wouldn't see the embarrassment written all over her face.

"I know this is a pretty awkward position for you to be in." Nozomi continues, following Eli at her own pace. "Complete strangers, getting married for purposes other than love."

'Well, it's not like its a real wedding' Eli thinks to herself, beginning to walk down a flight of stairs. She continues listening as she keeps her eyes forward.

"So instead of trying to adjust to being an awkward couple, why don't we be friends?"

Eli stops walking, a bit surprised from the sudden proposal. She turns up to look at Nozomi, who had stopped a few steps above her. She locked eyes with her, and Nozomi closed her eyes, smiling at her warmly. Eli felt her breath being taken away from her as the light from the window reflected off of her, making the darkened stairwell seem just a bit brighter. The blonde finds herself smiling back, before giving her reply.

"Yeah, okay."

Nozomi's eyes open, and they stare back at her with a newfound excitement. She takes the few steps down to her, her smile only growing. Eli had to look away, afraid she might go blind from looking at her too long. She continued walking, her smile still present on her features.

"I've- I don't think I've ever had anyone ask to be my friend before." Eli comments after a small bit of silence. Nozomi laughs a bit.

"Coincidentally, neither have I. I haven't had many friends before, so I'll do my best for you." the violet haired girl confesses, her hands locked behind her as she walks alongside Eli. Eli finds this a bit surprising, but she thinks a bit about what she wants to say before responding.

"Actually, I haven't really either." she admits glancing at Nozomi only to find her looking over at the same time. They both stare for a moment, before Eli adds. "I-I'm pretty work focused. But I will do my best for you too, Nozomi-san."

The two of them soon reach Eli's room, and Eli pauses out front of it.

"Stay here for a moment, I'm just going to go change quickly." She pauses before entering. "Have you seen the whole castle yet?" She asks.

"I got a very brief tour yesterday, but theres still a lot I need to see." Nozomi replies. Eli smiles.

"Perfect. Give me a moment, and then when I'm done I'll give you another tour."

* * *

"Aahhh, this stinks." Nico whines, idly test swinging a sword. Maki had done as instructed, bringing Nico to their training area and picking out a sword for herself. Her eyes rolled as Nico whined, unable to be satisfied with any weapon she picked up. Maki was ready to smack her with her own practice sword, but remember she had plenty of time to do that during tomorrows spar.

"Why? Some practice time is better than none." Maki comments, jabbing idly at the dummy in front of her.

"Yeah, but you're going to be here watching me the whole time. How do I know you're not just here to observe me so you can get the upper hand tomorrow?" Nico jeers, here eyes squinting towards where Maki is.

"Right, because I need to do that in order to beat you." Maki retorts. "From what I can tell I'll be able to beat you because you'll be so busy testing your sword."

The tinier girl huffs, gripping on the sword she has in her hands. She stomps towards a dummy on the complete opposite side of Maki.

"I'm way more skilled than you'll ever be. I'm the great Nico Nii! I'm nothing but the best." She boasts. Maki rolls her eyes, not responding to her. The only sound Nico can here is the movements of Maki's sword and her breathing. She sighs before beginning to strike the dummy in front of her.

Both girls continued this, eventually forgetting that they were in the presence of one another. They were lost in their movements, focusing on how their strikes hit, the power they put behind them, and how the dummy's swayed with each hit. Maki was determined and focused. She was confidant she could beat the other girl. She was one of the Captain's right hands for a reason after all, and she was the second best sword fighter in the castle. She may not have any awards to prove that yet, but she was confidant in her skills. She was Nishikino Maki, and she wasn't going to lose. With a final blow to the dummy in front of her, the rope tore and it fell to the ground with an ungraceful flop.

Maki's breathing was heavy, and she used her freehand to wipe the sweat that had formed off her brow. She walked over to the dummy, leaning the sword against the wall as she hoisted it up over her shoulder. Maki walked over to a corner of the training area, dropping the dummy onto the floor there where it would be out of the way. She glanced over to Nico, who was still striking the dummy she had been training on.

From just that observation, Maki could see how agile the shorter girl was. Her strikes were impressive, and she moved so fast that Maki had a hard time keeping up with her movements. The red haired girl continued to watch in awe as she never let up while she mercilessly hit the lifeless sack of straw. From this alone, Maki could tell Nico was truly skilled. Her nickname may sound silly, but she certainly lived up to it.

With another swift movement, Nico's dummy also met the cruel fate of hitting the hard solid ground. Her breathing was heavy, but she turned over to where Maki stood. They stared at each other for minutes, before Maki looked away. The red haired girl walked over to the sword she put down, picking it up and pretending to examine it while Nico continued to stare at her. Soon the twin tailed girl looked away, picking up the dummy and taking it to where Maki had placed hers

'This will definitely be a close match.' Maki admitted to herself as she stole a glance to the other girl.

* * *

After quickly changing, Eli emerged from her room in her usual light blue tunic. Both her and Nozomi made their way down the hall, happy to have a comfortable silence between each other. Eli would point things out in the castle, explaining their history or telling small stories behind the artifacts. Nozomi listened intently, excited to learn new things about Otonokizaka and the castle. They soon began calling each other by just their first names, knowing that becoming friends would be easier if they did.

"What do you plan on doing after we get married?" Eli finds herself asking as they walk outside towards where the stables were.

"Work of course!" Nozomi's replies instantly. "Though I wouldn't have the faintest idea of what I'd like to do." Eli nods understandingly.

"There's plenty of things around the castle." Eli reassures. "I'm sure you'll be able to find something in no time, Nozomi."

"You're probably right. Though, there is one thing I would really like to learn." She says. Eli glances at her wordlessly, giving her her full attention and waiting for her to continue. Nozomi takes a few steps ahead, looking over to the buildings.

"I want to learn self defence. I want to be able to protect myself when nobody else is around."

Eli watches as Nozomi's green eyes darken, her attention being pulled away from their small walk. Her eyes cast downward, and she soon finds her attention focusing on the ground. The knight is quiet as she observes her, not knowing what to say or if she should say anything. She glances away for a moment, contemplating the options she had. Before long an idea sparks in her mind, and her eyes light up as a smile spreads across her face.

"I'll teach you!" She exclaims. Nozomi turns up to her, a bit of surprise in her eyes.

"Really?!" She asks "You'd take time from your duties to teach me?" Eli nods quickly.

"When I have free time, anyway. We can start off slow, maybe a couple hours every other day." Eli explains. "Maybe if you wanted more time, I can talk to the Queen about making you my squire. This way you'd be with me while I worked, and we could give you a bit of training on the side."

The blonde watches as Nozomi gapes a bit, her eyes not leaving Eli. She can feel herself becoming a bit nervous. Was the idea to out of the ordinary? Eli began giving it second thoughts as she turned away, searching for any flaws in her plan. It isn't long before a small giggle interrupts her thoughts, and she turns back to Nozomi to see a wide smile on her face. Eli frowns a bit confused.

"You know, Eli." Nozomi begins. "I haven't known you for long, but you've managed to surprise me more these past couple of days than anyone else I know." Her smile softens.

"Is... that a good thing?" Eli asks hesitantly. Nozomi tilts her head, giving her a thoughtful expression.

"I wonder~." she says teasingly, before laughing again. Her eyes soon meet Eli's again, and she continues speaking. "I would love to be trained by you, Elichi."

Catching the new name quickly, Eli's cheeks tint a light shade of pink. It was simple, cute. The last time Eli had been called by a nickname was back home in the forest, where her family still lived. Her grandmother would refer to her as her 'Brave little Elichika.' She smiles a bit more, not hiding the happiness she felt from such a simple thing.

"My training is difficult though. Think you can handle it?" Eli asks, quirking her eyebrow at Nozomi. The shorter girl grins.

"You bet."

The two of them stand in a comfortable silence with each other, before the door to the stable opens. Rin and Hanayo walk out, Hanayo talking animatedly to her orange haired companion. Eli and Nozomi's attention falls to them, and Rin quickly notices them as well. She waves excitedly.

"It's the Captain!" Rin shouts, taking Hanayo's hand and dashing over to greet her properly. "Good day, Captain!"

"Good day Rin, Hanayo." Eli greets.

"And Nozomi-san too! Good day!" Hanayo adds in, smiling towards her. "I didn't think I'd see you both again until dinner.

Nozomi returns the smile. "I guess we caught you early then." Rin lets out a small laugh.

"Are you showing Nozomi-san around the castle, Captain?" Hanayo asks Eli. The blonde gives her a short nod, and Rin speaks up.

"What do you think so far?! Isn't it pretty great?!" Golden cat like eyes peer at Nozomi excitedly, and she turns her attention to Rin.

"It really is lovely. One of the most spiritual places I've ever been in." she responds.

Rin grins wildly, going off about other things with the castle that Nozomi and the Captain may have missed. Hanayo speaks up at certain points, correcting Rin on details she may have gotten wrong and adding in other facts. Eli watches as the three of them converse, Nozomi mainly listening as the other two discussed different parts of the castle. Eli catches the quick flash of green eyes looking to her, the smile not leaving Nozomi's features. She gives a small smile in return and watches her go back to her conversation with the other two, throwing in a question about the stables. This immediately attracted Hanayo's attention, causing her to go on an explanation of what their stables are like and how they treat the horses.

The sound of foot steps catch Eli's attention, and she looks over to see Maki and Nico heading their way. Both girls looked like they were ready for a good rest, and it pleased Eli to see they both seemed to be training very hard for the upcoming spar. She greets them both with a small wave, which catches the attention of the hyper girl near her. Rin glances over, grinning widely and greeting the two new comers.

"Maki-chan! How was practice?!" She asks curiously, looking over both her and Nico.

"It was fine." came the tired response. Rin laughs again, and Hanayo smiles sympathetically at her.

"You sound like you worked hard, Maki-chan." Nozomi comments, looking over to Nico with a sly gaze. "Did you work hard too, Nicocchi~?" She asks teasingly.

"Of course." She replies, unfazed by the teasing and stepping next to her. She crosses her arms, a small smirk forming on her lips. "I was so great, Maki ended up watching me with envy." Nozomi laughs lightly.

"It was more like she spent ten minutes choosing a sword, then speed training herself to make it look like she was working as hard as I was."

Nico gapes a bit, her cheeks flushing a slight red. Nozomi laughs again, it becoming a bit contagious and causing Rin to giggle as well. Eli glances towards Nico, who's now glaring at Maki.

"You know as well as I do it didn't take me that long to pick a sword! You're exaggerating it." she accuses, and Maki crosses her arms.

"I just called it as I saw it." She says simply. Nico's pout grows, and Nozomi reaches over to pet the top of her head.

"There there, Nicocchi. I know you probably practiced super hard." She pets Nico lightly, Nico's pout being slowly wiped off her face. She grumbles a bit, glancing away. Nozomi smiles a bit.

"Say, where are you two staying?!" Rin asks suddenly, looking between the two of them curiously. "Do you get your own rooms?" Nico looks over to her, nodding.

"I was given a room yesterday night, Nozomi and I shared it." She answers. Nozomi grins.

"Right across the hall from Maki-chan's room~" she adds in a sing song voice. Maki looks over surprised.

"What? Really?" she asks, and her eyebrows furrow a bit. "And how do you know which room is mine?"

"I had to meet with the Princess early this morning. On my way back to Nicocchi's room I saw you exit yours. You walked the opposite way I had come from, so you didn't notice me at all." The violet haired girl explains. Maki realizes it must have been before she started her morning rounds. She replies with a simple 'oh.'

"So you and Yazawa-san are going to be sharing a room?" Hanayo asks Nozomi.

"Hmm, I think that was only for last night. I think from now on I'm supposed to room with Elichi." This catches Eli's attention again, and she can feel everyone look over to her. She blinks before raising an eyebrow. She opens her mouth to speak, but is cut off by Nico.

"Haah?" Nico turns her body towards Eli, gazing her up and down carefully. "Not even married yet and you're already going to bed with her? I thought you were a respectable captain." Only Maki and Nozomi catch the teasing hint to her voice. Eli immediately raises her hands in defence, her eyes widening. Rin and Hanayo watch curiously.

"I-it's not- Well, I mean it is, but- Uhm." the captain looks away from all the girls, unable to word what she wants to say. Nozomi quickly cuts in, stepping closer to Eli.

"Of course, Niccochi! Didn't you know? Today wasn't the rehearsal. It was the real deal." She states before quickly linking one of her arms with Eli's. "How else do you expect us to spend our wedding night?"

Four pairs of eyes widened. Rin and Hanayo looked at each other, their mouths falling open before they looked to Eli. Eli's face was bright red, words still unable to form from her. Nico didn't know how to react aside from staring at Nozomi, looking for any sign of a joking smile or a wink. Maki, who hadn't been paying much attention in the first place, simply gazed at the now silent girls.

Nozomi soon grins, letting a small laugh escape her lips.

"Just kidding." Nico and Eli groan in relief, Rin laughs, and Hanayo sighs quietly, smiling nervously.

"Nozomi!" Eli scolds. "I almost believed you there! I got really concerned for a moment."

"I'm never going to believe a single word that comes from your lips again, Nozomi." Nico says flatly, causing another laugh to come from Nozomi.

"Sorry, sorry! I couldn't resist." She confesses, unlinking her arm from Eli's. "I think I might go ask the Queen about it though, just to be on the safe side."

Nico offers to go with her, and Nozomi happily say farewell to the other girls before making their way back to the castle. The four of them watch the two girls walk out of sight,and soon Rin and Hanayo follow. Maki turns to Eli, and Eli begins walking out into the grounds more. The red head follows her quietly.

"Were you just showing Nozomi around the castle?" She asks, eventually breaking the silence.

"More or less." Eli responds. "She's quite... interesting. Not like I expected her to be." Maki was relieved she wasn't the only one who thought this.

"We both agreed to be friends." She continues, a tiny smile playing on her lips. The word was unfamiliar to her, but it felt nice to say. If Maki's surprised by this, she doesn't voice it.

"How was your training?" Eli continues, deciding to keep a conversation going between them. Maki shrugs a bit.

"Alright, for the most part." Maki idly plays with the hilt of her sword, not knowing how else to respond.

"For the most part? Did something go wrong?" Eli presses, turning her gaze onto the younger girl. Maki shakes her head.

"No. Everything was fine." She answers. "I know I'll be able to win the spar tomorrow, but I guess seeing her in action made me lose a bit of confidence in my own skills."

The two fall silent, Eli not knowing how to respond and Maki having nothing more to say. It isn't long before the walk outside is over and both girls make it back to the castle. Maki decides to part from Eli, excusing herself to go rest a bit before dinner. Eli nods, walking in the opposite direction from Maki. It was a long, quiet walk and Eli found the only thing she could really think about was tomorrows big events. She hummed quietly, finding herself looking forward to the next day with more excitement than she'd care to admit. It was going to be a very, very interesting day.


	5. The Spar and the Wedding

Morning had come and gone soon for everyone, and the castle was bustling with activity from everyone. The princess had recruited many members of the staff to get the garden set up and prepared for the evening, while everyone sat together for the very first time in the dining hall for a quick lunch.

In the Otonokizaka castle, the Queen enjoyed eating amongst everyone. The dining hall had five very long tables where many guards and staff members would sit and enjoy their meals with one other. A few smaller round tables were placed closer to the head table, where the Queen and the Princess sat. The round table closest to them was where Eli's squad would sit during every meal, the second was the Queen's advisor and a few nobles, and the third were the final noble members. The dining hall was never truly full of people, as many workers ate at different times. The only occasions where it would be very loud and bustling were when Otonokizaka would host events, like the upcoming Summer Solstice festival.

At Eli's table, the blond sat with her eyes closed as she ate quietly, avoiding the grinning faces of the ginger haired girls who sat on either side of her.

"The Captain gets married today~" Honoka said in a sing song voice. Rin grins excitedly, leaning forward on the table to grab a fresh roll.

"And Maki-chan gets to have a fight!" She adds. "Ahh, I wish I got to do something like that today too!"

"Me too, me too!" Honoka adds in, nodding her head excitedly. She looks to Umi with a big grin.

"Hehe, maybe I'll fight Umi-chan for Kotori-chan's love~" Umi sputters a bit, looking over to Honoka with a small blush.

"H-Honoka!" Honoka laughs lightly, quickly leaning on the blue haired girl.

"Kidding! I'd never want to fight with you, Umi-chan." She says, smiling at her friend. Umi's expression softens and she smiles back.

"I wouldn't be fond of fighting with you either, Honoka-chan. Not unless its fighting alongside you."

The two of them laugh lightly, and Nozomi smiles a bit before looking to Nico, who idly poked at her food with her fork.

"Nervous, Nicocchi?" She asks quietly. Nico looks over to her, huffing a bit.

"Me? Nervous? Of course not. Not over a spar. That's ridiculous." She rambled rather loudly, all members of the table glancing towards the two of them. Nozomi grins a bit.

"Ah, so you are!"

"Nozomi!" Nico hisses, eyes narrowing at her. She lets out a small laugh, before smiling reassuringly.

"Don't worry, I'll be rooting for you." She pats the shorter girls head lightly, earning a small grumble from her. She lifts her gaze to see Maki glancing at them from across the table, then turning away as she notices Nozomi stare at her. The longer haired girl smiles to herself, before turning back to plate in front of her and listening to the various chatter from the others.

"This is kinda nice." She mumbles quietly, and Nico glances over to her.

"A lot different from Akiba, huh?" She comments, and Nozomi laughs slightly.

"A lot _better_ than Akiba." she whispers, putting emphasis on the better part of her reply.

Lunch is soon over, and Kotori excuses herself from the table she sat at with her mother to walk over to the big group of eight. She smiles happily as she approaches them, and Honoka perks up seeing her heading towards them. She stands up, waving excitedly.

"Kotori-chan! Are you all finished your lunch?" She asks, stepping away from the table and running over to her.

"I am!" She confirms, grinning a bit more. She turns her attention to Eli, smiling more sweetly.

"May I sit with your group, Captain?"

Eli looks over to Kotori, nodding with a small smile.

"Of course, Princess. You know you don't have to ask every time." The knight says, watching Kotori take the empty spot Honoka had once sat in.

"I know! I just prefer to be polite."

Kotori then turns to Umi, initiating a conversation with her about tonights events and her plan. Honoka took a seat next to Hanayo, listening in on the discussion between her and Rin about todays lunch (Hanayo always had a daily review about dishes she found delicious, and Honoka always enjoyed being apart of that conversation.) Eli places her eating utensils down, glancing around at the girls surrounding her. Maki and Nico seemed rather distracted, their minds probably focusing on their upcoming spar. Eli's eyes landed on Nozomi, who sat simply with a very content smile on her face.

Eli's mind wanders as she thinks about her soon to be 'wife'. There was a veil of mysteries surrounding both her and Nico, but the odd thing about it all was neither of them seemed suspicious. From what Eli understood, the backstory behind the two of them was they were close friends who were completing a mission for their king. Both had volunteered and both didn't mind the fact they would rarely find themselves making their way back to Akiba. If Eli didn't know any better, she'd think that both of them were happier that way. It made her wonder just how much you had to love or hate your kingdom to up and leave it to live the rest of your life in another one.

She took a quick drink of her water, then cleared her throat, gaining the attention of everyone present at the table. Eight pairs of eyes looked to her as she stood up.

"I think it's time we all make our way to the sparring ring." She announces. "It looks like we're all finished with our lunches, so now is as good a time as any."

The girls begin to stand up, some excitedly and some as they normally would. Rin hops over towards the exit of the grand room, with Honoka, Umi, Kotori and Hanayo following not far behind. The other four girls follow them, Maki and Eli walking side by side and Nozomi and Nico only paces behind them.

Maki had honestly been feeling alright up until Eli announced it was time for them to head to the sparring ring. She hadn't sparred with anyone since she was promoted, which wouldn't be so bad if she didn't have this awful gut feeling saying she might lose. All she could think about was how fast Nico had been the day before, how hard she hard worked to get that dummy into the dirt. Maki was confidant she'd do well, but she didn't know what to expect from her opponent. In a way, Maki thought of it as being in combat with an enemy. When sparring with a squad member you had been around, you have a good idea of how they might strike, how they might defend, what move they might do next. With an enemy, you had no idea how a fight may go.

Rin leads the large group of girls to another door that lead outside the castle. Not far ahead of them was a large structure that appeared to have no roof. The entrance to the inside of it was open, and stepping outside of the door were two guards. One had short blue hair, while the other sported a messier hairdo that was a reddish purple colour. Both girls immediately stopped what they were doing, standing straight and giving their full attention to the group of girls that now arrived.

"Good afternoon, Captain!" They chorused. Eli stepped past the five in front of her to see the girls.

"Good afternoon Tsurugi. Akira. Is the ring prepared?"

"Yes, Captain." Akira begins. "We've made sure there were absolutely no stray old weapons, or anything lying around inside the ring."

"We also made sure to bring the wooden swords as you requested, all of the leather armour we could find, as well as cleaned out the viewing stands." Tsurugi added in.

"Good work girls." Eli said with a proud smile. "You're both dismissed, and thank you for your assistance."

Both girls bowed their head in thanks, before making their way back to the castle. Eli turned back to the others.

"Honoka, Rin, please lead everyone who plans to watch into the stands. Umi, you'll take Maki to one end of the ring and help her prepare. I'll prepare Yazawa-san and give her an explanation of our spar rules."

The three girls agreed, and Eli counted everyone as they made their way into the stand. When she was short two people, she looked behind her to see what was keeping them. She was surprised to see a small embrace between the two, Nico's arms tightly around Nozomi, and Nozomi stroking her hair lightly. Eli had never seen an intimate gesture like that before a small spar, but she hadn't questioned it. She only watched with waiting eyes, before Nico pulled away. The two said nothing before looking over, and Nozomi smiling at Eli as she walked past them.

"I'm ready, Captain." Nico says. Eli nods a bit, leading her towards the large empty space in the center.

"Our spars are very basic." Eli begins. "Your goal is to get three strikes on your opponent. The way to earn strikes is by either disarming them, knocking them off their feet, or getting a hit in their vital areas." Eli stops Nico, turning to face her and gesturing to each part of her body that would count as the parts she wanted to aim for.

"Anything below the neck is fine, if you manage to hit your opponent in the face, you lose a strike. In battle its one thing, but in a spar its another. Don't aim for the head." Nico nods understanding and Eli turns to her right where an arrangement of gear was place. She examined it all, before picking out an assortment of things.

"Hold out your arms." Eli instructed, and Nico did as told. She began placing different pieces of leather armour in Nico's arms, examining to make sure they might possibly fit her. Once finished, she looked back over to Nico.

"Try those on, if something doesn't fit right, we'll change it."

It didn't take long for Nico to narrow down what fit her and what didn't, and soon she wore the ugliest mismatched suit of armour she ever had seen. She frowned, examining the chest part and the arm guards with disgust, before looking over the helmet. She looked to Eli, who only quirked her eyebrow as she waited. Nico sighed, disgruntled before putting the old nasty looking helmet on.

"Perfect. Now for your sword." Eli took a step to the weapons, grabbing a simple wooden one and holding it out to Nico. Nico takes it, giving her a confused stare.

"Normally when we hold fights in this ring, they're for festivals or when we're recruiting new knights. Spars we generally have near the training hut, but since its a recruiting match, I thought it was only fit we had it here." Eli says. "However, I only need to see how skilled you are in battle. So no real swords will be needed. The leather armour will be more than enough protection from these swords, but you may still end up leaving with a couple bruises."

Nico stayed silent, giving a small nod to acknowledge that she understood. Eli watches her give the sword a small test swing, before her gaze looked back up to her.

"Is there anything else, Captain?" She asks, and Eli watches as the determination creeps into her features.

"That would be everything." Eli replies, looking over to the other side to see that Umi and Maki had finished as well, and were waiting for Eli's signal. Eli gave a small nod, before looking back to Nico.

"Follow me to the center then." Eli lead the way, Nico following her. Maki and Umi began walking as well, meeting Eli and Nico right in the center.

The ring was an average size, not overly large but not very tiny either. The stands were only about a foot taller than the average person, which was ideal for any guard in the stands to hop down and enter the ring themselves if anything out of the ordinary were to happen during a match. Up in the stands underneath a tented seat was where the rest of the gang sat. Kotori in the throne, with Honoka to her right and Nozomi to her left. Sitting next to Honoka was Rin, and on Rin's other side was Hanayo. All of their gazes were on the four of them as they patiently waited for the fight to begin.

"Umi, you can head to the stands. I'll be there in a moment." Eli says, and Umi nods. She pats Maki on the shoulder as a small good luck gesture, before walking away from them.

"Alright, I need both of you to stand facing each other right here." Eli directs the two of them towards a small circle marker. Nico and Maki do as told, both facing one another on either side of the marker.

"Both of you know the rules. I don't need to explain anything more. The spar will be over when one of you loses all three strikes, or if I've decided I've seen enough. When one person gets a strike, you both will need to get back into the starting positions and wait for my cue. Understood?"

"Yes Captain!" Both girls say, not taking their eyes off of each other. Eli nods.

"Alright. When I say begin, you both may start." She looks between the both of them, before turning around.

"Good luck girls." She says as she begins to walk away.

Maki and Nico stand perfectly still, their swords gripped tightly in their hands. Maki's eyes meet Nico's, and both their gazes reflect their feelings. In the quiet moment before they were to make their moves, Maki felt like it was only the two of them in the entire area. She could read Nico's expression and see the drive she had to win, the tiny hint of nerves, and even the hint of excitement. In an odd way, the feelings rubbed off onto Maki. Maki exhaled slowly, finally beginning to relax. This was one small challenge and she could do it. She knew she could. Any and all unsure thoughts she had were thrown away, and in place of them were thoughts of winning and proving how strong she was to the girl who stood before her.

Eli had reached the stands and settled herself between Umi and Nozomi. She quickly cleared her throat, before declaring loudly.

"Begin!"

Neither girl makes a move at first. Both of them tighten their holds on their swords and keep their eyes on each other. Maki's eyes never waver, and her feet dig into the ground, bracing herself for anything. A minute quickly passes and before Maki can even blink, Nico's sword collides with hers, creating a loud wooden smack that echoes throughout the almost empty arena.

In the blink of an eye, swift fast movements are made and the sound of swords hitting swords is all that can be heard. The fierce duel had finally begun, Maki defending herself from every hit that Nico had swung at her. She'd be damned if she let the shorter girl get the upper hand of her in the very beginning.

A few minutes of this goes by, Maki never letting up and Nico's strikes hitting with the same force and same speed. Soon the shorter girls pulls back, taking a brief breather. Maki takes advantage of this, throwing in her own strike and beginning to take the offensive position. Nico quickly defends, and they begin the same movements again with Maki striking and Nico blocking.

"She's good." Umi comments, unable to tear her eyes away. Eli hums in agreement. Impressed was an underwhelming word for what she felt as she watched this spar.

Nico suddenly falters, losing her footing a bit. Maki takes advantage, using it as her chance to quickly knock Nico off of her feet. She hits the ground with a small thud, and Eli calls out the point for Maki. Nico gets back onto her feet, dusting herself off slightly with a disgruntled expression.

"HANG IN THERE, NICOCCHI!" Nozomi shouts, both of her hands around her mouth to amplify the sound of her voice. Eli and Umi both look over to Nozomi, slightly surprised by her outburst.

Nico glances over to them and smirks a bit.

"Of course I will! I'm the great Nico Nico Nii!" She shouts back, before getting back to the starting position. Eli could see the sour expression had left her face, and in place of it was a small grin.

"We're allowed to cheer them on!?" Rin inquired excitedly, leaning over in her chair to get a better look at Eli and Umi with her questioning eyes.

"Well, as long as you aren't distracting them, it's not a problem." Umi says, giving the short haired girl permission. Rin grins excitedly, before putting putting her hands around her mouth.

"YOU CAN BEAT HER, MAKI-CHAN!" She shouts loudly, and Maki quickly avoids looking at them.

"I'm sure it won't be too distracting." Nozomi comments. "After all, many knights who fight in a tournament hear the sounds of cheering crowds. They'll probably just take it as background noise."

Eli quickly shouts for the girls to begin again, and Umi smiles slightly.

"Fair point, Nozomi-san." She responds, her eyes again glued to the fight in front of her. "This would be good practice for Maki, since she wants to take part in the next festivals tournaments."

Eli smiles lightly, remembering when Maki mentioned how she looked forward to it. It was a rare moment many didn't see from her, and she had only admitted it after a lot of pestering from Rin at the dinner table one night.

"Alright!" Honoka laughs a bit, lifting up her own hands. "FIGHT ON MAKI-CHAN!"

Maki quickly dodges a strike Nico had made, her face heating up more in embarrassment. If Nico wasn't so focused on their spar, she would have laughed about it. Soon Maki takes the offensive back, beginning to strike swiftly and forcefully towards her opponent. After both of their swords clash roughly, they both take steps back, pacing and observing each other.

Their pacing continued for a while, an occasional strike being thrown at the other before they would go back to pacing and observing. There was something off about this to Maki, and she frowned as she realized it. Nico wasn't working nearly as hard as she had been against the dummy. Maki felt like this was just a test, like Nico wasn't going to fight at her full potential. The thought enraged her, and she dove in with a fast strike, their swords clacking loudly again.

Maki had acted too rash, not expecting Nico to take the offensive from her. With carefully planned strikes, Maki soon found herself being pushed closer and closer towards the wall. She quickly hit Nico's sword again, pushing against it and trying to force herself out of a bad position. It was -unfortunately- exactly what Nico was expecting, and she quickly sidestepped, pulling her sword with her. Maki stumbled forward, and before she could even regain her footing, Nico had knocked her to the ground. She looks up and sees Nico's tiny smirk through her horrendous helmet, and grumbles to herself as she pushes herself off of the ground.

"IT'S OKAY MAKI! YOU'VE GOT THIS!" "DON'T GIVE UP, MAKI-CHAN"

"WAY TO GO NICOCCHI!"

The chorus of encouraging cheers come from three of the girls and Maki and Nico silently make their way back to the center circle. Maki and Nico's eyes meet as they get ready to begin again, and Nico grins a bit more towards Maki.

"You're not bad." Maki says, gripping onto her sword.

"Did you expect anything less?" Nico provokes, and Eli's voice is soon heard again.

Maki quickly takes the offensive, beginning to use Nico's previous tactics on her. Before Maki can even corner her, Nico pushes back forcefully, their bodies getting closer as neither of them let up. Nico smirks a bit, quietly whispering so only Maki can hear.

"You're not so bad yourself, Maki-chan."

They quickly break apart, both of them starting to pace yet again and watch each others movements very carefully. Soon, Nico makes another move, and the two of them become lost in their strikes and their blocks, not once missing an opportunity to make a new move or defend from an incoming hit.

Time begins to fly by with the two of them stilled tied one and one. Everyone is quiet while they watch the girls in the ring continue to give it their all. By this point, Eli knew Nico was more than qualified to be in her squad. Being able to spar this long with Maki and be tied was quite an achievement in her eyes.

"Captain, I think we should end the spar soon. We may have seen all we needed to see out of this." Umi says, voicing everything that Eli had been thinking. The blonde continues to watch the two, before nodding a small nod. Before she can even call out the end of the match, Maki is disarmed. Honoka, Hanayo, Kotori and Rin gasp loudly as the wooden sword spins out of her hands and lands on the ground a few feet from the to of them. Eli becomes intrigued yet again.

"Ah, well, at this point it's almost over now." Kotori says, looking over to Umi and Eli with a small smile. "We might as well let them finish."

Both Nico and Maki are breathing heavily as they stand back in their beginning positions. The leather armour they wore clung to their now sweaty and tired bodies. They're given the go ahead, and they begin yet another round of the spar. Silence washes over everyone again as they watch the two of them duel it out. Eli crosses her arms while observing, curiosity about Nico's job before this entering her mind.

"Nozomi?" She calls out, getting the other girls attention.

"Hm?" she responds

"What exactly did Yazawa-san do before arriving here with you? She's clearly had some kind of training, it's very evident." Nozomi watches the spar a bit more before replying to Eli.

"Nicocchi had trained a lot to become a part of the city guard back in Akiba." Both Eli and Umi turn their heads to Nozomi for the second time, surprised looks on their features.

"The city guard?!" Umi asks. Nozomi nods.

"Akiba's city guard is well known for their ability to get their jobs done fast and quick. The members of it are always very fair and just, seeing to it that everyone who broke the law was arrested and received punishment they deserved, and returning stolen goods to their former owners. Many people look up to Akiba's city guard, and so many tried to become apart of it. Nicocchi was one of the many who tried."

"Unfortunately, Nicocchi never passed the test. Her skill level wasn't right for it at the time, so the city guard suggested she apply to be a gate keeper at the castle. She got the job very easily." The violet haired girl finishes her story and turns her attention back to the fight before them.

"From what I'm seeing, Im positive if Yazawa-san was to take the test now, she would pass." Umi says. Eli nods her head in agreement.

As soon as their conversation ended, Nico loses her footing and Maki gets a quick hit in, knocking her onto the ground for the second time. She groans quietly, lying there for a brief moment before she forces herself back on her feet.

"I think I've seen enough now." Eli says, quickly standing. She then calls out loudly to the two of them.

"THE MATCH IS OVER!" She announces, and both Maki and Nico turn their attention to the stands, their bodies relaxing the moment the words left Eli's lips. She steps down to the wall, hopping down from it and making her way to the other two in the center. Umi follows suit, wanting to congratulate both of them on a fantastic match.

"Man, Maki-chan you're seriously tough." Nico whines, immediately beginning to pull the disgustingly sweaty helmet off of her head. The two of them decide to walk over to the side lines, meeting Eli and Umi half way. Throughout the small walk, Nico had pulled off as much of the terrible armour as possible.

"I'm a knight, Nico. T-that was just a small show of what I can do." She replies, before stopping in front of Eli and Umi. She pulls her helmet off quickly giving her head a light shake and looking towards her two seniors. In truth, Maki had tried really hard to stay on top of Nico's movements, and to this date it was one of her more challenging matches. She quickly decided she would never admit that out loud to anybody.

"W-well I didn't really try hard at all either!" Nico retorts, before also looking at the captain and the navy haired girl. Maki resisted the urge to roll her eyes.

"Just excuse us for a moment, Yazawa-san." Eli says to her. "We're going to have a quick discussion between the three of us." Nico nods.

"Alright, Captain." She looks over to the others, who were now at the edge of the wall. She walked over to them and looked up to Nozomi. After placing all the armour that rested in her hands on the ground in front of her, she crossed her arms and gave Nozomi and expecting gaze.

"Well? How'd I do?" She asks. Nozomi grins brightly, giving her a thumbs up.

"I think you aced it, Nicocchi." Nico smirks proudly, lifting one of her hands to toss a bit of her hair behind her.

"I'll say!" Rin quickly adds, sliding in next to Nozomi. "Can I spar against you next time, Yazawa-san?!" Nozomi laughs lightly.

"Sure, why not!" Nico declares. "The great Nico Nico Nii will take anyone on!"

They soon become engrossed in their own conversation, not noticing how Eli, Umi and Maki had returned with a verdict. At the sound of Eli clearing her throat, Nico quickly turns to them, standing straight and giving Eli her full attention.

"Yazawa-san, your skills are incredible." Eli begins. "And you've certainly caught my attention with them. The fact you were able to last that long in a fight with Maki, defending from all of her hits, it was quite impressive to watch."

Nico smirks more, enjoying the giant boost to her ego.

"So, I'd like you to be apart of the squad." A few cheers are heard from Rin and Honoka, and Nico grins.

"Thank you, Captain. I won't let you down." She says excitedly.

"Well wait a moment, there's more to it." Umi quickly adds. Eli thanks Umi, before continuing.

"With careful thought, we've decided you will be working under Maki." Nico blinks, a bit surprised to hear this.

"Eh? You're not just going to give me a specific position?" She asks, the excitement slowly draining from her.

"I'm the Captain of the Queen's forces. Everyone in my squad is capable of doing any position given to them." Eli explains. "Because I don't have a specific spot I would like you to be, I've decided to leave you under Maki's direction."

"Kind of like how I work under Umi?!" Rin asks, butting into the conversation.

"Exactly, Rin." Umi smiles up at her, and Rin grins back towards her.

"Any message Maki might need to pass on will also be given to you to deliver, Yazawa-san." Eli adds.

Nico slumps a bit, her expression slightly irritated, but she sighs slightly.

"Alright, Captain." she mumbles.

"Princess," Umi begins, smiling in her direction. "I think we're all done here."

Kotori's face brightens and she stands up. She takes a few steps to Nozomi, her smile growing a bit as she reaches her.

"I'll be taking Nozomi then!" She proclaims, using both her hands to take hold of one of Nozomi's.

"Then I'll be going with the Captain." Umi replies. Both girls smile towards each other, and Kotori looks over to Honoka.

"Honoka-chan, we leave the rest of the garden preparations in your capable hands! Please make sure everything is as it should be! Hanayo-chan, please help me with Nozomi! We have to make her look perfect!" She begins to pull Nozomi down out of the stands and back towards the castle. Nozomi looks over to Nico and Eli, giving them a small smile and a wave before she's dragged away by Kotori. Hanayo says a quick goodbye to everyone before following the two older girls.

"Alright! I'll be off to the garden then!" Honoka announces, before looking to Umi and Eli with a smile. "Umi-chan, will you be coming to the garden after?" Umi nods, a smile on her lips.

"The moment we're done we'll head straight over." Honoka beams happily.

"Great! See you then!" As Honoka is about to head to the garden, Eli stops her quickly.

"Maki, Rin, Nico, you three go with Honoka. It won't take me long to get ready, so Umi and I will be with you all shortly." she instructs.

"Erm, alright Captain." Maki says. "Before that, is it alright if Nico and I get changed quickly?" She gestures to their clothes. "I don't think its very appropriate to take part in a wedding with sweaty tunics." Eli smiles slightly.

"Good point. Change first, then we'll see you at the garden." Both her and Umi begin to make their way back to the castle, leaving the other four to themselves. Rin smiles at the two of them.

"We'll see you in the garden!" she exclaims. "And congrats, Yazawa-san! I look forward to working with ya!"

"I do as well!" Honoka adds in. The two of them wave a bit before making their exit. Maki and Nico only share a look, before they too head out of the ring and back towards the castle. For most of the walk, both girls are quiet. Nico is only steps behind Maki as they head towards their rooms.

"I'm glad it's you." Nico says suddenly, catching Maki's attention.

"Eh? Would it have been a big deal if it wasn't?" Maki asks.

"Well, considering you're the only person in this castle that I trust, yes. It would be a huge deal."

Maki is unable to form a proper sentence as she watches Nico walk past her. Her chest swells with pride as she is reminded of such a simple fact. She begins to think about their spar more, her mind lingering on moments they had throughout it. Moments where Nico seemed to not be trying. She frowns slightly, before glancing back to the black haired girl.

"Can I ask you something, Nico?" she asks quietly.

"Sure." She shrugs, not looking at the red head.

"I watched you when we were practicing. You were so into it, I hadn't expected you to have such good speed or swift hits. But the spar we just had was a lot different. You were slower, more precise. At first I thought you were just being cautious but as we continued, it felt like you were just biding your time. I can't help but feel like-" Maki hesitates, figuring out the right wording for what she wants to say. "I can't help but feel like you were holding back. When you mentioned that you were doing that earlier..." Her voice trails off, before she continues.

"That wasn't a lie, was it?" Nico stops walking, turning to look at Maki. Maki stops as well, waiting patiently for Nico's response.

"It wasn't. It was the truth, Maki-chan." She eventually says, before continuing to walk. Maki grits her teeth a bit, before following her.

"Why did you holt back!? Am I not a good enough opponent!?" Maki asks incredulously. Nico shakes her head.

"You were an amazing opponent, Maki-chan. Just give it a bit of thought." Nico says, the entrance to her bedroom coming into view. "You'll understand why I held back." With that being said, Nico opens the door and steps inside. She shuts it gently behind herself, and Maki's eyes narrow at the now closed door. After a moment of glowering, she turns to her room, taking the few steps towards it. She grabs the door handle, thinking over what Nico had said and only concluding one thing.

If it wasn't because Maki was a bad opponent, than it had to have something to do with the story she heard back at the inn weeks ago. She shook her head and sighed quietly before opening up the door and entering her room. She would have time after work to think about it, and with that she put the thought out of mind as she stepped towards her dresser to find a new tunic to wear.

* * *

It isn't long before Eli and Umi make it to the group in the garden, and both were astounded by the beauty they saw before them. Leading from the castle all the way to the gazebo was a long, mahogany rug. The pathway was lined with various flower arrangements varying from the budding marigolds to the various clusters of forget me nots. It was a colourful sight for everyone, and Umi found herself smiling softly.

"This is astounding." She comments, stepping quietly towards the gazebo. Eli can only hum in agreement, unable to take her eyes off the vibrant colours of the decorations. The staff really had outdone themselves, and it warmed Eli's heart slightly knowing it was all for her and Nozomi.

Inside of the gazebo, Honoka and Rin were placing down the thrones where the Queen and Kotori would sit. Honoka then instructed the other two to begin moving the table, and both Maki and Nico came into view with a small heavy looking wooden table. The both of them in fresh, new tunics. Maki sported a dark purple one that matched her everyday uniform, and Nico wore a ligther brown tunic than the one she had before. The girls gently placed the table down a few feet from the thrones, and Nico quickly wiped some sweat from her brow.

"Geeze, that things heavier than it looks." She complained, glaring slightly at it. Maki rolled her eyes.

"I was doing most of the work, Nico."

"Obviously that wasn't very much." She jabs, earning a glare from her. Eli quirks her eyebrow, a bit amused by their interaction.

"I'd be careful about saying things like that to your superior, Yazawa-san." She comments, surprising the four girls there. Nico stiffens, slightly embarrassed that the captain had seen her complaining. Maki finds herself smirking slightly.

"Yeah Nico-chan. I could make you take gate duty from Mika for a week just for making stupid comments." She said. Nico gives her a tiny glare, before mumbling a small apology.

"So, what do you think Umi-chan?! Captain?" Honoka asks excitedly, putting her hands on her hips and examining the area. "It isn't much, but we made it look good!"

"It looks very impressive, Honoka-chan." Umi compliments, stepping over an patting her head lightly. "Good job." Honoka laughs lightly, thanking Umi for the compliments. She then looks to Maki and Nico, grinning slightly.

"I think we're pretty much done here, Maki-chan!" She declares. Maki nods, then looks to the shorter girl.

"You remember where the princesses room is, right?" She asks. Nico nods quickly, her eyes brightening up with light excitement. Maki then nods.

"Okay, you can go help with Nozomi then." She responds. Nico grins a bit.

"Thanks Maki-chan!" She says. Before she makes her mad dash, she looks to everyone around her. "Before I go, since we're all comrades now, you can refer to me as Nico."

With a quick flash of a smile, she begins running down the steps and out of sight to the castle. Eli watches her run off, before looking to Maki for an explanation. Maki smiles slightly.

"She wanted to see Nozomi before the beginning of the ceremony. Probably to give her reassuring words and help with her appearance somehow." She explains to the captain. Eli nods simply, turning away from the path and beginning to distract herself with watching the other girls finish up the final decorations.

Nico had easily found her way to the Princess; room, remembering the way to it the day they had arrived. She gave a firm knock to the door, waiting patiently for it to be answered. The door opens a crack and Hanayo peers out, looking out and smiling as she notices who it is.

"Yazawa-san!" She says happily.

"Just Nico is fine, Hanayo." Nico responds.

"O-oh! Of course, Nico!" She smiles a bit apologetically, before glancing around to confirm she is by herself. "Is something the matter?"

"No, nothings wrong. I just wanted to see Nozomi." Nico replies.

Hanayo pulls back, looking over to Kotori. Kotori gives her a simple nod, not turning away from the work she was doing on the girl in front of her. Hanayo quickly pulls the door open more, allowing Nico to step inside. Once she was in, Hanayo closed the door quickly so nobody walking past could get a glimpse inside. Hanayo was determined about keeping the brides appearance a secret. Nico thanks her, and stops a couple feet in as she takes a look at girl in front of her. Kotori gives a satisfied hum as she finishes the hairstyle, pulling away and looking to the newcomer.

"Well Nico, what do you think?" She asks excitedly, gesturing to Nozomi.

Nico can feel her breath caught in her throat as she looks over her friend. Nozomi sat at a white vanity, wearing a pastel yellow dress that was all to familiar to Nico. The bottom of the skirt was lined with a beautifully darker yellow trim, adding the perfect accent to the lighter shade. In the center of the skirt and torso was a strip of violet, complimenting the dress wonderfully. Nozomi's hair was tied into a long elegant braid that hung over her left shoulder. Woven between strands of her hair were tiny white flowers, adding another beautiful affect to her appearance. To say Nico was impressed would be a great understatement. Nozomi gave Nico a friendly smile, which she slowly returned.

"She looks beautiful, Princess. Just like a bride." Nico replies, her smile not faltering. Kotori beams more, excited to be praised on her hard work.

Nico continues to stare at her friend, the hands at her sides clenching the fabric of her tunic slightly. Sensing the oncoming mood, Kotori quickly walks over to Hanayo.

"Hanayo-chan, lets head out to the garden and see how things are there." She gives a small smile to Nozomi and Nico. "I'm sure Nico can help Nozomi finish up." Hanayo nods in agreement, opening the door and stepping outside.

"Thank you for all your help, Princess." Nozomi gives her head a slight bow to Kotori, and Kotori simply smiles.

"It was an honour, Nozomi! I had a lot of fun." She flashes a grin to Nozomi. "We'll send Rin-chan over in about fifteen minutes" She adds. She gives the remaining girls a small wave as she exits the room.

Nozomi and Nico stay in silence for a brief moment. Nozomi smiles warmly to her friend, before turning back to the vanity and looking herself over. Nico quietly steps over, fixing Nozomi's dress sleeves a bit. Her voice is soft when she begins speaking.

"I didn't think I'd ever see this dress again." Nozomi hums a bit.

"It's a beautiful dress, it deserves to be worn on an occasion like this." She replies. They both fall silent again, Nico pulling her hands away and giving Nozomi a small inspection. Swallowing the nervous lump in her throat, she speaks again.

"Maki-chan knows."

Nozomi nods a bit, not looking away from her reflection.

"When did you tell her?" Her voice is soft and calm, not conveying a single feeling of surprise or anger. Nico looks down, putting her hands to her sides.

"Back at the Inn. I'm sorry I kept it from you." Nico bows her head as an apology, her eyes still on the patterned floor underneath them.

"You don't need to be sorry, Nicocchi." Nozomi says quickly, turning to face her friend. "I'm just happy you were able to confide in someone." She gives her another warm smile as Nico looks up to her. She returns it with a simple smile of her own.

"Thank you, Nozomi." She says, both of them falling into silence again. Nico gave Nozomi's face a quick glance over, making sure the light makeup that had been added looked right. Noticing one eye was a bit different from the other, Nico instructs her to close her eyes. She uses a handkerchief close by to wipe the makeup off, before grabbing the tiny brush and beginning to fix it. Nozomi's smile grows a bit.

"Eli offered to train me." She confides, keeping her eyes closed. Nico pauses her movements briefly as Nozomi continues speaking. "I'm going to be something like her squire from now on. It sounds pretty exciting."

Nico's gaze hardens as she begins moving her hand again, concentrating on the makeup.

"Nozomi." She begins. "I don't think that's a good idea. You co-" Nico's words are cut off when Nozomi looks up at her, her eye clouded with pain Nico hadn't seen since the very night they left their old kingdom.

"Nicocchi, this is a new start. For both you and I. I want to be able to defend myself and I want-" Nozomi hesitates, looking away from Nico to the sky outside the princess' window.

"I want to be able to protect everyone else too." She confesses, not moving her eyes from the window. Nico watches Nozomi quietly, knowing anything she were to say from here would never be able to persuade the stubborn girl into doing a different job. She gently turns Nozomi's face back to her, using the brush to finish up what she had been doing before. Nozomi quickly closes her eyes, letting Nico do her work.

"If that's what you want to do, then you can do it." She says simply. "But I'll never break my vow to you." She pulls away, admiring her handiwork. Nozomi opens her eyes, looking to Nico and smiling softly. Nico returns the smile with a small grin of her own as she puts the tools down. She holds her hand out for Nozomi's, and the violet haired girl takes it, pulling herself up from the chair.

A soft knock is heard at the door, and Rin's muffled voice can be heard from the other side.

"Nozomi-san! Nico! We're all ready!" Nico walks over to the door, opening it.

"Thanks, Rin. Nozomi's finally ready now." Nico glances back with grin, holding her arm out for her. "Right Nozomi?" Nozomi grabs her bouquet -an arrangement of white and light purple lilies- from the table before standing and taking the few steps forward, linking her arm with Nico's and smiling at a wide eyed Rin.

"As ready as I'll ever be."

* * *

At the garden, Eli was beginning to lose her cool demeanour. Eli knew the wedding wasn't real, it was all an act, but she couldn't shake off how real it all felt. The gazebo's decorations attracted a lot of attention, and just outside it many people had gathered and taken their spots on the makeshift seats. The Queen and the Princess sat in their thrones inside the Gazebo, and before them on the small table was two goblets, half full with the finest wine the kingdom had. On a small pillow off to the side were two rings, and she had been instructed the one on the left was the one she was to slip on Nozomi's finger, while the one on the right was for Nozomi to slip onto hers. Everything in this moment felt very real to her, and the nervousness she felt had been a feeling she hadn't felt since becoming a knight. She stared at the half full goblets, going over everything she needed to do to pull off this wedding right.

Eli clasps her hands together in front of her, looking down the the ground and distracting herself with the floor. The only comforting thought she had was that she wasn't doing this alone. Nozomi would be there soon, and together they would go through with the wedding. All eyes on the both of them, and not just her. She raised her head, looking amongst the people. Many of the castle staff chatted quietly amongst themselves as they waited for the bride to arrive. To the side, Hideko, Fumiko and Mika were chatting with the musicians -two girls, one with long silver hair and the other with shorter light brown hair- who would play a soft tune when the ceremony would begin. Not far from them was Hanayo, who was listening intently to Honoka and Umi as they conversed. Maki stood next to the brown haired girl, also paying slight attention to the bubbly knight. Eli wasn't sure what it was they were talking about, but judging by how excited Honoka was it could only be related to how the set up of the garden went.

Excited footsteps are soon heard, and many heads turn to the two figures who now entered. Rin beamed excitedly as she sped up toward the gazebo. Nico was beside her, her expression giddy and excited as well. Everyone fell silent as both girls stood straight, glancing past the captain and to the Queen who sat in her elegant throne. Both girls bow their heads quickly, and the Queen smiles motherly at them. Eli notices Nico glance her way, a slight smirk growing on the twin tailed girls face. The blonde quickly averts her eyes, her face heating up and heart beat slightly increasing. It was finally time.

"Everything is ready, your Majesty!" Rin announces. "The bride is waiting for her cue!"

Queen Minami thanks her and Nico, before gesturing for silence. The other duo make their way to the sidelines, standing between Maki and Hanayo. They turnexcitedly towards the end of the path, waiting for it all to begin. The Queen nods towards the musicians, who nod back in confirmation. They pick up their instruments, getting themselves ready to play.

Eli stands straighter, her eyes focusing on the pathway in front of her. This was it, the most important moment of the day. For her anyway. She squeezes her hands tighter together and keeps her stare ahead as the music begins. The soft melody echoed wonderfully throughout the garden, the lovely tune playing in everyone's ears as they turned their attention to the end of the path. Eli swallowed the lump that returned to her throat, watching and waiting eagerly for Nozomi to step down the path and over to her.

With light steps, Nozomi came into view. Many gasps were heard, and Eli's eyes widened in awe at the woman that stood just a few bounds away from her. The dress she adorned complimented her skin, the pale yellow and purple standing out beautifully amongst the gardens flowers as well. The bouquet of lilies was held gently in her hands as she walked slowly and gracefully towards Eli. The blonde felt her mouth go dry the moment her eyes met Nozomi's. All she could see in them was happiness and excitement, and in an odd way it comforted the previously nervous captain. Eli smiled softly, captivated by the beauty that soon stopped before her.

There's a brief moment of silence as the music stops, and Eli takes a moment to whisper a compliment.

"You look very beautiful, Nozomi." Nozomi blushes lightly, giving her a small shy smile.

"Well I did say we'd match today, didn't I?" she replies with a small laugh. Eli's eyes light up and she laughs lightly as well.

"That you did."

Nozomi then glances over to Hanayo, who quickly steps over and takes the bouquet from her hands. She smiles excitedly at the both of them as she makes her way back to the side, showing off the bouquet to the others next to her. Eli holds her arm out, and Nozomi links hers with Eli's as they step towards the table ahead of them. They nod to the Queen, before turning to each other. They take hold each others hands softly, keeping their eyes on each others faces.

The Queen smiles before standing from her seat, and soon she recites the traditional wedding speech. The Queen herself saw it fit to marry the two of them, which comforted Eli slightly. She listened intently as she stared at Nozomi. Nozomi in turn stared back at her calmly, both of them waiting for their turn to speak. Eli couldn't stop the small smile from staying off her face as Nozomi's grin stayed on her own. It was contagious, and Eli couldn't get enough of it. To the crowd ahead of her, she looked quite happy. Like this wasn't just a political decision, but something she truly wanted. Umi, Maki and Nico watched with soft gazes. To the eyes of someone who didn't know, the both of them truly looked like they were in love.

The couple then began their vows and I do's, both being very basic and quick. Eli and Nozomi slip the rings on each others fingers, the blonde fumbling a bit nervously with Nozomi's. Nozomi smiles reassuringly at her as she completes the task, and Eli returns it with her own nervous smile. The two then turn to the goblets, each taking one in their hands. They cross their arms, their smiles still on their faces as they sip from the cups. The sweetness of the wine is all Eli can taste, and she swallows it quickly. Wine really was something she found she could only drink on occasion in very minimal amounts. The girls soon unlink their arms, placing the goblets back down on the table. The both of them look to the Queen, who simply smiles.

"You may now kiss the bride, Captain." The Queen instructs. Eli freezes a bit, her eyes widening slightly. Kissing? Her eyes look at Nozomi as her cheeks tint pink.

Kotori never made them practice a kiss in the rehearsal, or even mentioned that there would be one. Eli completely forgot that the ending of the ceremony always began with the kiss between the bride and the groom. Eli felt like an idiot for forgetting, and she temporarily froze. The panic she felt must have shown, and before she could do anything Nozomi gently placed her hands on Eli's shoulders.

"Just follow my lead, Elichi." She whispers. Eli nods lightly. Nozomi leans upward quickly, lightly pressing her lips to Eli's. Eli can feel the light pink tint turn into a full blush. Nozomi's lips are soft, welcoming. Eli's eyes closed, realizing that Nozomi had smelt just link the flowers woven through her hair. It was very comforting to the knight. Before the Captain could even return her kiss, it was over and Nozomi began to pull away. Eli opens her eyes and the first thing she can see is Nozomi's eyes. In her green iris', Eli could have sworn she saw sparkles. Her own light blue eyes light up, and she's quickly pulled out of her trance when Nozomi giggles lightly. Eli simply gives her an awkward half grin, unsure if she is even able to speak at the moment.

"With that, I now would like to present the newly wedded couple to you all!" The Queen calls out, gesturing to Eli and Nozomi. "Captain Ayase Eli of the Otonokizaka guard and her wife, Ayase Nozomi!"

The audience begins to applaud as Nozomi and Eli turn to them all, both embarrassed, but happy. Eli's eyes fall on her squad to the side. Honoka and Rin are cheering loudly as they clapped, and Hanayo is wiping her eyes of the slight tears that have formed. Maki and Umi are giving Eli a knowing smile, both of them clapping lightly. Nico on the other hand sports a coy smirk, seeing right through the both of them and completely enjoying how embarrassed the captain was. Eli glances away quickly, unable to stare at the twin tailed girls face much longer yet a second time in the span of an hour. She can see Nozomi's eyes on her and she returns the look. Nozomi links their arms, whispering softly.

"Here's to a long friendship, Elichi." Eli smiles lightly, only nodding her head in agreement.

It was the perfect beginning for a brand new adventure that Eli found herself looking forward to.


	6. Lesson Day

I apologize for the delayed update here! Had computer issues that needed to be solved! Thank you for being patient!

* * *

Time had passed since that fateful day and it didn't take long for Eli and Nozomi to become used to their new daily routine. Both girls would awake around the same time, they would join the group for breakfast, and then it would be time for them to begin their morning duties. The morning would begin with a quick patrol around the castle, checking in on other guards and getting updates on any and all activity, suspicious or not. After morning patrol around the inside and outside of the castle, Eli would check in with her majesty to see what her plans for the day were. On days the gates would be open, Eli and Nozomi would be present in the courtroom for the entire duration of villagers arriving in and out. On days they weren't, what was once Eli's private training time became Nozomi's defense lesson time. After that, Eli liked to check in with the squad and make sure everything during their daily jobs was going alright. It was during this time Nozomi learnt that if they approached the other girls, odds are their jobs were going alright for that day. If the other girls approached them, that meant the captain was needed for something. Once that was done, they'd join everyone in the dining hall again for dinner, then do one last evening patrol around the castle before going about their own business (which usually meant Nozomi taking a walk through the garden and Eli filing reports in her quarters.) At the same time every night, Nozomi would return to their room, get herself ready for bed and wish Eli a good night. Eli always replied before going back to her work. Some nights she would join Nozomi after only a half hour, other nights she would spend hours staying up before putting the fire out and climbing into bed as well.

It was now mid May, and Nozomi gently brushed through her hair after a long day of work. Eli sat at her desk, scrawling along a piece of parchment that would be added to a small stack next to her once she was finished. Nozomi watched her idly, wondering just how long she would be awake tonight. She could tell the night before that Eli had stayed up far longer than she should have, and it was the same for the two nights before that. It didn't take her too long to learn that Eli truly was a girl who immersed herself with her work and made sure everything was up to standard and more. When she asked Maki how often an occurrence this was, Maki explained that this was Eli's every day life. The girl ate, slept and breathed work always, never taking breaks unless ordered to. Nozomi thought it was ridiculous, but now she was seeing first hand just how true it all was.

Nozomi put her brush down, tying her hair back into it's signature style before turning her attention back to Eli. Sure enough, the committed blonde was still scribbling away. Nozomi continued to watch her as she lifted her hand to her mouth, pausing briefly to yawn. Nozomi stood up, gently creeping over to Eli and glancing over her shoulder, peering down at Eli's work for the evening.

"How many more of these reports do you have left?" She asked, startling the blonde a bit. Nozomi bit back a giggle as the blonde turned to her with slightly widened eyes. She quickly composed herself, clearing her throat before answering.

"A few. If I hammer through them tonight then I'll have a few days with no reports before the new batch is sent in."

"A few huh?" Nozomi glances to the stack of untouched papers, frowning slightly. "What exactly are they?" She then asks.

"They're weekly activity reports from around the kingdom." Eli explains. "I review them and any report that seems out of the ordinary, we file away into the archive next to the library. Anything that meets expectations is used as kindling for fireplaces throughout the castle."

Nozomi hums understanding, glancing over the stack of signed ones.

"So when you sign them, you're just confirming you've read the report then?" Eli nods, not answering as she reads over a new report.

"So what would count as out of the ordinary for the kingdom?" Nozomi asks as she glances over a paper Eli had signed. The blonde sighs, putting the report she had been reading down.

"Suspicious activity basically. Many guards are very direct, and will write day by day how events went. If it's a good day, many guards will state the day went well with nothing out of the ordinary. If it gets lengthy, theres usually something that was amiss. Sometimes I have to look into it, most times I don't." Eli says.

"So then on this report with the talk about Ranpha-san's chicken coop being demolished and her animals stolen, that would be out of the ordinary?" She asks. Eli immediately stops what she's doing, grabbing the report Nozomi talked about and groaning as she rereads it.

"How did I miss that..?" She mumbles to herself, sighing as she puts it into another smaller pile.

"Most likely because you're very tired, Elichi." Nozomi replies. Eli looks up at her with a small frown.

"I'm not. I'm perfectly fine, thank you." She says in a matter of fact tone.

"When are the responses to these reports due?" Nozomi asks, tilting her head as she looks at Eli.

"Ideally? As soon as possible. The sooner we weed out the problems, the sooner we can get them solved." Eli responds, turning back to her papers. "I should be able to get them done before bed if I get back to them now." She eyes Nozomi suspiciously. Nozomi nods.

"How about I help you then?" the violet haired girl asks. Eli frowns, and Nozomi continues. "I don't need to sign them, but I can give them a read through and pile them into the good and the bad. This way you'll get the work done faster, and you'll be able to get a good nights rest." Nozomi walks over to the spare chair in the room, lugging it over to the desk and sitting down.

"I appreciate the offer, but I'm fine." Eli says simply.

"It doesn't take me peeking at my cards to know that you're not sleeping right, Elichi." Nozomi says in a serious tone. The blonde looks back at her, her frown lingering. As if to prove her point, Nozomi gestured to the paper Eli had to look over. "You proved that yourself when you missed the demolished chicken coop."

Eli was too tired to argue, and she sighed. Begrudgingly, she took the stack of papers that had yet to be looked at and placed them between her and Nozomi. Nozomi smiles, thanking Eli before taking the top sheet off and looking it over.

After only forty five minutes, all the reports were done and organized into two neat piles on top of Eli's desk. She smiled a bit satisfied, before yawning again. She stretched a bit, feeling the exhaustion of the days events hit her full force. Nozomi smiled a bit, walking over to Eli's dresser and grabbing the night gown she usually wore. Without saying anything, she walked back to the blonde and held it out to her. Eli took the clothes from her, smiling a small thank you smile before heading over to the changing screen and getting herself ready for bed.

Nozomi got herself settled into their bed, yawning quietly to herself. When Eli emerged from behind the changing screen, she pulled back the covers and watched as the other girl tiredly climbed into bed, pulling the covers up and letting her head hit the pillow. Nozomi followed, closing her eyes and facing opposite Eli. Through her sleepy haze, she hears Eli mumble a small thank you, and just before sleep takes her Nozomi smiles to herself.

* * *

A loud knocking is all that can be heard, and Nozomi furrows her eyebrows. She opens her eyes once the knocking is heard again, and she glances to the window. The sky was still very dark, but the hint of sunrise was there. She lifted her arm to rub her eyes, only to find that there was some sort of weight on the left side of her body. She turned her head to find Eli snuggled close, sleeping soundly with her face pressed into Nozomi's shoulder. Nozomi didn't stop the smile from appearing on her face, for this was the fourth time it had happened since she began sleeping in the same bed as her. She kept it to herself, knowing that it'd be fun teasing material in the future.

It was then that Nozomi was reminded that there was somebody at the door, and she slowly removed herself from the bed. Eli stirred a bit, before pulling the covers over herself more and continuing to sleep. Nozomi covered her mouth to hide her small smile, before heading over to the door. She opened it quietly peering out into the dark corridor. Standing in the door way was Umi, a small smile on her face when she saw the door finally open. Nozomi smiled a bit at her.

"Good morning, Nozomi." Umi greets. "Sorry to disturb you at such an early hour."

"Good morning, Umi. It's alright, I would've been up soon anyway." Nozomi replies, before opening the door a bit more."Did you want me to wake Elichi?"

"Actually, I came here to see you." The navy haired girl replies, before holding out a pile of folded clothes. Nozomi stares surprised, before taking the clothes from her and glancing over them.

"It's a gift, made by the princess herself." Umi continues with a smile. "Everyone in our squad has coordinated tunics made special by her, as her way of thanking us for our hard work every day."

Nozomi smiles a bit as she looks over the light purple tunic she now held. It matched Eli's completely in design and stitching, and the colour would definitely look good on her. The princess had a very good eye for colours and styles of clothing. Nozomi looks at Umi, her smile never wavering.

"I'll have to thank her later on, this is very lovely. She must have worked really hard on this. Did she?" she asks, and Umi returns her smile.

"The princess loves to sew. I'm sure she's just happy that she got to produce more clothes for others. She made one for Nico as well, and I had Honoka bring that to her." Nozomi laughs a bit, folding the tunic back up.

"I'm sure Nicocchi will be just as grateful to have new clothes. Thank you, Umi." Umi gives her a small nod, before stepping away from the door.

"I'll be beginning my early morning rounds now, but I'll see you at breakfast." she says. Nozomi nods, saying a quick good bye and watching Umi walk away from their door way and down the hall. As quietly as she can, Nozomi shuts the door and heads towards the changing screen. She decided since she was awake, she might as well try on the new uniform.

As she changed, Eli had woken up from her slumber. She tiredly sat up, looking around the room and taking in the minimal amount of light. She sighed, pushing her legs off the side of the bed and stretching out her arms, humming in satisfaction at the feeling. She stood and stepped over to her dresser, grabbing her clothes for the day. She was about to walk over to the screen, before noticing Nozomi appear from behind it, fixing the collar of the new clothes she wore. Eli blinked surprised, and Nozomi quickly noticed her attention.

"Morning Elichi." she grinned a bit. "How do I look?" She stood in a pose tat gestured to the purple tunic, and Eli took in Nozomi's new attire. She nodded a bit, smiling as she recognized the design.

"Looks like the princess made something for you." Eli comments. "It looks great. The colour suits you well, Nozomi." Nozomi laughs a bit.

"Umi just brought it over, the knocking didn't wake you, did it?" She asks, and Eli shakes her head.

"No, I woke up on my own." Eli responds, covering her mouth as she yawned. "I feel like I could sleep more though."

"Why don't you?" Nozomi asks. "It is your day off, isn't it?" The blonde nods as she walks towards the changing screen. She glances behind her to look at Nozomi.

"It is." Eli confirms. "But we're going to spend it training you today." Eli watches Nozomi's eyes light up a bit, her lips curling into a smile.

"I wouldn't mind if you slept in a bit before we started, you know." She says in a teasing tone, and Eli simply shakes her head before walking behind the screen.

"That's not really my style, but I'm sure you could tell that by now." Eli remarks.

Nozomi laughs a bit, and a comfortable silence falls between the two of them. Eli quietly undresses herself, discarding the dirty clothes into a hamper near the end of the screen. She began slipping on her day clothes, flattening out any creases and adjusting the collar. Once most of the clothes were on, she stepped out from behind the screen, walking over to her dresser. She picked up her arm guards from the top, slipping them on and making sure she had every piece of her uniform on.

Once finished, she glanced over to Nozomi, who had a few of her cards spread out in front of her on their bed. The violet haired girl smiled as she flipped a card over, humming satisfied as the fool card now lie face up. Eli grabbed her boots from their home near the door, then walked over to her chair. She sat down, slipping one boot onto her left foot, then continuing with the right. Once finished, she brought her attention back to Nozomi, who was shuffling her cards back into a pile and slipping them into her new tunic's pocket. Her smile grew more as she stood up, walking over to her boots and deciding to slip them on as well. Since today wasn't an actual work day for Eli, she decided her chest plate didn't need to be worn, and simply moved towards the door, waiting for Nozomi patiently.

The other girl finished tying her boots, then walked towards Eli. They both shared a tiny smile, before making their way out of the room and into the now dimly lit hallway. Both girls walked in silence, knowing the people in the neighbouring rooms were most definitely still asleep. When they began descending the stair case, Nozomi began to ask questions.

"What kind of training are we doing today?" she began.

"The beginning of the physical parts." Eli answered.

"Does that include sparring?" Nozomi tilted her head a bit as she asked. Eli shook her head.

"It's unlikely we'll have an actual spar. We'll be practicing your form, and I'll teach you basic things. You've never been in combat before so its important you learn what to do when you find yourself in a fight." The captain explains. Nozomi gives a small hum in understanding.

They continue walking in silence towards the dining hall, the castle slowly becoming livelier as more castle staff begin to wake up. Nozomi would greet everyone with a smile, and Eli would give a simple nod. It became common knowledge around the castle that you would see the two of them together almost all the time until dinner. Many guards found this convenient when they needed to see the captain. When Eli was in Nozomi's company, it felt less intimidating than when Eli was on her own. Eli never paid any mind to rumours or gossip amongst others, but she wouldn't lie that hearing the good things did bring her a slight bit of happiness.

The two of them enter the giant room, noticing very little people present at that early hour. Nozomi laughs lightly, stepping towards the table where they usually ate.

"Looks like we're much earlier than I thought." She comments, sitting down on a stool. Eli follows her, taking her usual seat and nodding.

"That's alright. It just means we have a bit of free time before every one joins us." The blonde replies. She watches as Nozomi digs her hand into her pocket, pulling out the deck of cards she had earlier. Eli eyes them a bit, watching as Nozomi begins to shuffle them in her hands. Nozomi watches Eli's eyebrows furrow, noticing that she was tempted to ask something but was deciding against it.

"Did you want me to give you a reading, Elichi?" she asks curiously, turning her body to face Eli's. Eli blinks, before shaking her head.

"Ah, no thank you. I'm fine." She replies curtly. Nozomi smiles a bit, lifting a card from the top of the deck to reveal a tiny picture of a bright yellow ball, the words "the sun" written along the bottom.

"Suit yourself, Elichi~" Nozomi lays the card face up on the table, turning her body away from Eli and engrossing herself in her cards. Eli watches her with curious eyes as Nozomi draws a few more cards, laying them out on the table.

Nozomi's face only has a small smile as she stares at the cards in front of her. She hums a bit in satisfaction, placing her deck to the side as she examines all of them. Eli continues to watch, her eyes finding their way to Nozomi's. In Eli's observations of Nozomi, she came to learn that the violet haired girl's eyes said a lot more than she might. She had first noticed it that evening in the Queen's quarters, when she had made eye contact with her for that first time. Nozomi's eyes reflected all the curiosity she had felt, but her face had remained in a neutral smile. Nozomi's eyes soon met Eli's, and Eli quickly averts her gaze. She can see Nozomi's grin in the corner of her eye, which causes a small blush to arise on her cheeks.

"Did you need something, Elichi?" She asks curiously. Eli takes a small breath of air, ridding the tiny shade of pink from her face before facing Nozomi again.

"Not really," she begins "I just wanted to know if the cards were saying good things." it wasn't a total lie, since Eli truly was curious about what Nozomi asked the cards. Nozomi simply smiles, piling the cards that faced up into a small pile between her and Eli.

"The short answer is yes." Nozomi says, beginning to line the faced up cards between them. Eli eyed them all carefully, noticing that there were six cards in total. "Would you like to hear the long answer?" Nozomi asks. Eli simply stares at the cards, before nodding.

Nozomi begins getting into a lengthy explanation about the cards that were set before them. She gestures to each of the cards that she had drawn, explaining what the meaning was behind it in the order that it had been drawn. Eli was surprised to learn that Nozomi was able to predict such things from a simple deck of cards. She had just assumed it was all a small game that Nozomi played with made up meanings and predictions, she didn't think that things like astrology and spiritual beings were involved as well. By the end of Nozomi's review of her tarot reading, Eli had formed a complete new opinion on the cards and readings Nozomi did.

"How often do you do readings like this, Nozomi?" Eli asks curiously. She simply smiles.

"I don't do actual readings very often. Readings are usually done with another person and their own question, but sometimes I feel like humouring myself and getting a reading for my own question." She answers happily.

"What was your question for this reading then?" Nozomi begins to pull the cards back, sliding them into her deck and back into her pocket.

"That's my secret." She winks, and it takes every part of Eli not to push her for a proper answer. She settles with squinting her eyes slightly, causing a laugh to erupt from Nozomi. "I can't just tell you what I asked, sometimes voicing the question could have consequences on the outcome~" Eli hadn't considered that, and she mumbles a small "oh" in understanding.

Nozomi begins to ask questions about the upcoming lesson, and Eli answers to the best of her ability. The hall began to have more people entering, and the castle soon begins to bustle with the activity of maids and guards. Umi soon entered the giant hall, seeing that both Eli and Nozomi were occupying the table she expected to be empty. She approaches quietly, and greets both of them the moment she reaches the table.

"Good morning Captain. Good morning again, Nozomi." Two heads turn her way, and Eli gives a small smile to her subordinate.

"Good morning Umi. How was your patrol?" Eli asks, watching Umi take the seat next to her.

"It went quite well. Everything throughout the night was quiet as it always is." Eli smiles a bit more.

"Perfect." She comments. "Today will be an easy day then."

"I should hope so," Umi says. "It is your day off. You should take the time to relax today, Captain." Eli only gives Umi a small stare, and Umi sighs. "Captain, we're often telling you that you shouldn't overwork yourself. It's bad for your body, you can't stay in top form if you're not taking care of yourself."

"Yes, yes I know." Eli sighs. "I'm grateful you're all concerned for my wellbeing, but I really am alright and I will rest when it's needed." Umi eyes her carefully, not quite trusting Eli's words.

"Don't worry Umi, if Elichi doesn't then she will have to face a divine punishment." Nozomi adds in, catching the attention of the two of them. "I'll make sure Elichi rests and will help her out as well."

The navy haired girl smiles thankfully to Nozomi. She bows her head slightly.

"I entrust the Captain to you then, Nozomi. Please take good care of her." She says. Eli quickly sputters, and Nozomi laughs.

"As her wife, I'll do my best, Umi-chan~!" She grins, and the both of them laugh when they see Eli's small blush.

In the following moments, almost everyone in the squad joins them at the table. Kotori had excused herself from her mothers table to eat with the small group of girls, and her and Nozomi fell into their own conversation about the tunic Kotori had sewed together. Rin, Honoka and Umi were going over the days instructions, since Umi would be taking over Eli's jobs while she took the day off. Hanayo had finally arrived, dressed in a lighter green tunic that matched Rin's. Normally she would wear a dress while she dotted on Kotori, but on days she did stable work it was easier for her to work in clothes that were easier to move in and wouldn't snag on anything in the stable. She greeted everyone with a shy hello, and Rin and Honoka repeated the greeting back loudly and enthusiastically.

Eli does a quick head count, noticing immediately that only two more people needed to arrive. She idly sips her water, and as if on cue, the final two girls enter the dining hall. Nico struts over excitedly, adorning her brand new light pink tunic with a smug smile. Maki follows her closely, her annoyed expression giving off the impression that she had definitely heard nothing but Nico gushing about the tunic the whole walk there. Rin quickly sees the two of them and shouts a happy greeting, catching the attention of everyone else. Kotori suddenly gasps, her smile broadening.

"Nico-chan!" She says excitedly. "How do you like the new tunic?!"

"Please don't ask." Maki mumbles, but the comment goes unheard as Nico cuts her off.

"Princess, this may be the best tunic I've ever worn in my life!" She declares, posing in a proud stance with her chin up and her hands on her hips. "Not only is it stylish, but it's comfortable and looks perfect on me! This was definitely worth being woken up for."

"I don't actually think she was completely awake when I delivered that to her." Honoka says under her breath, earning a small giggle from Rin, who seemed to be the only one who heard her.

"I'm glad! Now you and Nozomi-chan officially match everyone else." Kotori gives her a closed eye smile, and Nico grins a bit. She turns her attention to Maki, who was now sitting in her usual seat at the table.

"Maki-chan," she begins, taking her seat next to her. "You never told me what we were doing today."

"That's because you were going on about how good you look the whole walk here." Maki retorted. Nico simply waves her hand before speaking again.

"Hey, you could've stopped me at any time but you just let me keep talking. So what's today's work?"

"We're working in the stables with Hanayo-chan today." Maki replies, piling food onto her plate. "It'll only be us, plus Rin today, so it'll take a long time.

Nico frowns lightly, and Rin leans over the table towards her with a cheeky grin on her face.

"At least you'll get to spend the day with your horse, Nico!" Nico's face immediately lights up, and her smile returns quickly.

"You make a really good point, Rin! Looks like today will be fun." She comments. She then begins to grab various food items and place them on her own plate.

Breakfast goes by quickly, and the first people to excuse themselves are Honoka, Umi and Kotori. Since Umi was the captain stand in for the day, only Honoka would join Kotori through her lessons and day plans. Umi would make her way around the castle doing Eli's every day duties. The three of them had walked away, standing close together until they reached an exit. Umi gently squeezes one of Kotori's hands, then gives Honoka a small smile and pat on the head before she parts from the two of them. They turn the opposite way, Kotori linking her arm with Honoka's as they make their way towards the library. After that, Hanayo and her stable helpers excuse themselves as well, leaving the two who had been the first to arrive at the table by themselves. Eli shares a look with Nozomi, who gives her a small smile.

"Shall we get started on your lesson then?" Eli asks.

"Sounds like a good idea to me." Nozomi replies. The two girls stand, and Eli leads Nozomi out of the large hall and outside towards the training hut. The walk there was quiet, and theres an excited bounce to Nozomi's steps as they head towards their destination. They arrive quickly, and Eli tells Nozomi to wait outside as she grabs the equipment.

Eli enters the little hut, quickly locating and grabbing the two training swords she was looking for. The warn wooden swords were always her favourite go to practice weapon. Part of it was because she grew up surrounded by woods, but the other part was because it was much more satisfying hearing the clack of the wooden swords rather than the scrape of steel swords. She exits, and smiles at Nozomi who stood where she was told to. She holds out one of the swords, and Nozomi hesitantly takes it.

"I'm sure I don't need to tell you, but I think I should remind you that even though they are wood, they can still hurt like crazy if you're hit without protection." Eli warns, and Nozomi nods understanding.

"Shouldn't we put on some of that armour that Nicochi and Maki wore during their spar?" Nozomi asks.

"No, we won't really need it since it's not a real spar." Eli says. Nozomi pouts slightly, a bit of disappointment creeping into her tone. Eli only smiles apologetically at her. "Sorry Nozomi, but you're a far ways away from being able to spar properly with me." She says. She then instructs Nozomi to give the sword a couple test swings. Nozomi does as told, quickly adjusting to the new weapon in her hands. Eli watches her closely.

"You know, even if I've never sparred, I think I'd be a worthy opponent for you." Nozomi says in a playful voice. Eli quirks her eyebrow.

"Oh really?" She comments. Nozomi gives her a tiny grin.

"Well, I think I would anyway. You wouldn't go all out on a beginner, would you captain?" She asks, her smile staying on her face.

"Only if the beginner was silly enough to challenge me to begin with." Eli replies, and Nozomi laughs lightly. "But as I said before, it's unlikely we'll actually spar. We're going to move onto your stance now."

Eli begins to walk towards the small field, Nozomi following close behind her. As she walked, Eli explained the importance of your stance and how it can affect your battles. Nozomi listened intently to the blonde, taking in all the information and thinking about how to apply it properly. Eli described several different situations where different stances would be appropriate, but also told Nozomi that once she found a comfortable fighting stance, finding a way back into it was an important part of staying strong in a battle.

"Alright Nozomi." Eli says, turning to her pupil. "Show me what kind of fighting stance you think would best suit you."

Nozomi stands still for a moment, contemplating it. With a serious gaze, she stood tall, her right hand holding her sword out while she put her other hand behind her back. When Eli stares at her expectantly she simply gives her a tiny grin and a laugh. Eli shakes her head.

"Nozomi." she says warningly, and Nozomi laughs again, getting out of the silly pose.

"Sorry Elichi, I couldn't resist." She responds. She soon puts both of her hands on the hilt of the sword, firmly placing her feet on the ground and holding the object tightly in her grasp. Her legs are spread apart and she's looking straight in front of her. Eli hums a bit in approval.

"Not too bad" She comments, stepping over to her.

"When in any kind of fight, it's always good to know your surroundings and what type of stance you might need to take. The stance you have right now is perfect for defending from hard hits coming directly towards you. " Eli lightly taps her sword against Nozomi's. "You've braced yourself for any hit coming at you, now you just need to carefully watch your opponent and make sure you block every single strike. Otherwise, you could be dead."

With the last comment, Eli's eyes glint seriously and she moves as fast as the eye can blink. Her wooden sword clacks loudly against Nozomi's, who had pulled it up to block the sudden surprise hit Eli had aimed towards her. Both girls are pushing hard against the other, and Eli can feel that Nozomi's strength is definitely very weak. She uses very little effort to fight against her squire. Nozomi's footing slips a bit, and Eli pulls her sword away.

"Well done, Nozomi. That was a very good block." Eli compliments. Nozomi smiles slightly, her eyebrows raising a bit.

"I didn't expect you to strike so hard, but I'm glad I was still able to block it."

"Which shows you were on guard when you needed to be." Eli smiles a bit. "Always be on guard, Nozomi. In a battle, its another thing that you need to focus on. If you aren't on guard, you're as good as dead."

"I'll try to remember that," Nozomi responds "Though I think that would be hard to forget."

The lesson continues, Eli moving on to the next part.

"Lets talk about movements now." She suggested, and Nozomi simply listened. While she thought they seemed to be burning through a lot of things, she was also finding that everything she learnt she was able to take in well. It seemed like a good sign, as Eli seemed very impressed with Nozomi's results on each task she was asked to do.

"Now, you can't always predict what your opponent might be like," Eli began. "Especially in the beginning of a match. You have to observe each other closely, take in their stance, get an idea of if they might take the offence or be preparing to defend against you. Depending on how they are, there's a chance you can predict what their movements may be." She gets into her own stance, then instructs Nozomi to describe it to her. Nozomi stares for a moment, eyeing Eli closely before coming to a verdict.

"You look like you're ready to attack." she observes, then continues to speak. "But in a way you also look like you're about to step out of the way of anything coming towards you."The blonde smiles.

"Correct! That's exactly what I was going for." Nozomi grins a bit, proud that she had guessed right.

"Now you try. Copy the pose I was in." Nozomi doesn't hesitate, and quickly stands in the exact pose Eli was in moments before. "Now, copy my movements as well." Eli instructs, beginning to side step. Nozomi copies her, glancing towards her feet to make sure she's stepping right. Eli taps her sword against Nozomi's, causing her to look up.

"Eyes on me, Nozomi." The violet haired girl mumbles a small okay, staring Eli down as the two began to circle each other.

Both girls are silent while they continue their movements, not even the sound of each others breathing could be heard through the quiet area. In a quick movement, Eli strikes at Nozomi again. The latter gasps, quickly dodging Eli's strike. Another quick movement from Eli, and the two begin a series of strikes and dodges. Nozomi grips her sword tightly, soon bringing it in front of her to block a hit from her opponent. She pushes back against Eli, and Eli shoots her a big grin

"That's it!" Eli yells excitedly. "Keep going!"

Eli pulls away quickly, aiming another fast hit at Nozomi. She successfully blocks it, and the two become immersed in their own little world of Eli hitting and Nozomi blocking. Eli can't wipe the grin off her face, feeling a great amount of enjoyment from the simple fight. She notices Nozomi's focused on her blocking Eli's strikes, but the glint of happiness doesn't miss Eli's keen become oblivious to their surroundings, not noticing the entrance of the princess and her guard, who began to watch them. The captain quickly pulls back from Nozomi, going back to side stepping and staring. Nozomi's breath is heavy, and a small glint of sweat can be seen on her forehead. She follows Eli's movements, gripping her sword a bit tighter before smiling a bit.

"You know," she starts, her breathing still heavy. "In an odd sort of way, it feels like we're dancing."

Eli's eyes widen a bit as the comment takes her by surprise. Nozomi quickly takes advantage of the opening, swiftly swinging her sword towards the captain. Eli quickly composes herself, blocking the hard hit and only stumbling slightly. Blue eyes find an amused smirk on the face that was now not so far away. Nozomi was definitely feeling proud of herself, and Eli found herself smiling despite being caught off guard. Nozomi pulls away, before throwing another hit at Eli. Eli quickly defends, and they continue back and forth with hits and blocks.

Unfortunately for Nozomi, her stamina seemed to be running out, and Eli soon found a weak point, getting out of defending and throwing a hit towards Nozomi. Their swords collide loudly, and both girls are pushing back against one another with as much strength as they can muster. Eli was quickly overpowering Nozomi, but the other girls eyebrows furrow as she continues to push back. Her arms are shaking slightly, and the determined gaze that rests on her face doesn't falter. Eli knows continuing to push against each other will get them nowhere, and quickly spins out of the way. Nozomi stumbles forward, another gasp escaping her lips. Her breathing is heavier now, and Eli herself is panting a bit.

"You're good." She comments. "Really good." She lowers her sword, brushing some hair behind her ear and wiping the tiny bit of sweat off her face. Nozomi mumbles a small thank you, leaning over to catch her breath more. A tiny amount of clapping is heard, which catches their attention. Eli looks over to see Kotori and Honoka, who were grinning and applauding.

"Princess!" Eli exclaims, standing straighter and bowing her head. Nozomi quickly follows suit, and the elegant princess approaches the two of them.

"Hello Captain! Nozomi! You two look like you're having a fun day off of work." Kotori greets, and the two of them lift their heads.

"Well, I wouldn't call it a day off." Eli says in a slightly joking tone. Honoka's eyes widen a bit and she grins lightly to herself. "Is there anything you need, Princess?"

"Unfortunately, yes." Kotori gives her an apologetic smile. "The Queen gave Umi the new sign up list for the Summer Solstice festival, but Umi needs to be present while she see's the villagers today. So we need someone to gather a list of the knights and guards who want to participate in this years events." Kotori looks at Honoka, who hands over a large rolled up scroll and quill to Eli. Eli takes the items with care.

"Already?" she says quizzically, holding the parchment close to her. "This is pretty early, even for the festival."

"I think it has something to do with inviting guests to join the festival this year." Kotori says, and Eli nods a bit understanding.

"Wouldn't Rin-chan be more appropriate for this job?" Nozomi asks, gently taking a small bottle of ink from Honoka so that Eli wouldn't have to juggle the items.

"Normally," Honoka begins. "But since the stable help is short today, Umi-chan wants Rin-chan to stay there and help out."

"It can't be helped then." Eli says, turning to Nozomi. "Looks like our lesson is over for today, Nozomi. We'll go see the Queen before beginning this task." Nozomi gives a small smile.

"That's alright, Elichi." She says. "I'll put the equipment away quickly so that we can do the Queen's request." She takes both swords, scurrying back to the hut and dropping them off. Eli waits patiently and before long the both of them say good bye to Honoka and Kotori and make their way back to the castle.

"Hey, Kotori-chan." Honoka says, looking up to her. "Did you feel something different about the Captain too?" Kotori smiles more as she watches Nozomi and Eli enter the castle. She takes Honoka's hand in her own, then looks to her ginger haired protector.

"I think she's starting to adjust to having someone with her all the time, Honoka-chan." She replies. "Like how I have you and Umi-chan!" Honoka lets out a small laugh, giving her hand a small squeeze.

"Maybe you're right!" She says, pulling Kotori along as she begins to walk. "Let's go visit Umi-chan after our walk."

"Okay!" Kotori beams, following Honoka as the two make their way towards the gardens for an afternoon walk.

* * *

At the stables Maki, Rin and Hanayo were hard at work, cleaning every stall carefully and tending to each horse. Maki currently stood inside the stall of Eli's horse, a dark bay coloured mare with a small white star on her face. She idly tended to the stall, grumbling as the sounds of Nico cooing and petting her horse were heard in the stall across from hers.

"Nico-chan!" Maki says exasperatedly. "You can play with him once we're done work! Grab a shovel and start helping us!" Nico places her hands on the taller darker horses face. She pouts slightly.

"But Kuro missed me! Look at his sad eyes and tell him I can't play with him.!" To emphasize her point, Nico gestured to the beady eyes of the intimidating creature. Unphased by this, Maki looked directly into the eyes and spoke flatly.

"Nico can play with you when she's done cleaning." In the stall next to Nico, Rin burst out into a loud fit of laughter. Nico's pout increases.

"There there, Nico-chan." Hanayo cuts in, carrying a giant pile of fresh hay towards the stall Rin was in. "We're almost all done, then we can play with them all and give them a good brushing."

"Well-" Nico pauses, as if contemplating the idea. "Alright then. I'll do it for Kuro~" Maki scowls, scraping the soiled hay out of the stall.

"Oh sure, you'll do it for the horse, but not the girl you work under."

"What was that?" Nico retorted, and the two girls fall begin to bicker, both horses they had been tending to turning the other way and avoiding them. Rin sighs loudly.

"Geeze, and I thought today would be the day they didn't argue."

Both Maki and Nico glare at the short haired girl, who laughs lightly. Nico turns away from them, grabbing the shovel she had been using earlier and getting back to work. Maki stubbornly turns the other way, going back to what she had been doing as well.

It isn't long before the two of them are finished, and they walk over to the pile of new hay. Nico reaches a pitch fork into the pile first, hauling up a large amount of the yellow straw and heading straight back to Kuro's stall. Maki copies, nodding to Hanayo and Rin as they go off to get fresh water for the horses. She drops the hay into the darker horses stall, watching it step over and idly chew on a piece. Both girls are quiet as they continue filling other stalls with the new hay and shovel the old dirty hay towards the pile outside the stable. When Maki goes to get another pile of hay, she notices Nico lingering at Kuro's stall again, petting his nose idly. The redhead walks back over, dumping new hay into the stall next to his and glancing over to the black haired girl.

"You really love that horse a lot." Maki observes. Nico hums.

"He means a lot to me." Is all she says. Maki pushes her pitch fork into the ground, leaning on it as she continues to peer over at Nico.

"Is there a story to him?" she asks.

"Hm?" Nico quirks an eyebrow, looking over to her. Maki continues.

"I mean, he's unlike any other horse I've ever seen. He's taller, has a wavier mane, even his hooves look different than a lot of the horses you see around here." She looks at the black horse, adding another question to her original one. "How'd you get a horse like him?"

Nico turns her attention back to Kuro, continuing to pet his nose. A small smile was on her face as she began telling the story.

"When my Papa was around, he worked in the Akiba market. My Papa liked to help out around the place with the merchants and their stalls. He wanted to have one of his own there one day, but we only had a tiny wheat farm. We sold any wheat we grew to the bakers for a decent price." Nico pauses, glancing to Maki. "And before you say anything, yes, I was raised on a farm."

Maki resisted the urge to roll her eyes and continued to listen to Nico's story.

"Anyway, so I don't really know how, but my Papa ended up trading our smaller quarter horse for him. The person who traded him said that Kuro was an uncooperative horse, wouldn't listen to anything the guy wanted. Papa was the only one willing to trade for him, and that night he came home with Kuro as a gift for me~" She laughs a bit. "Well, partly. He was also used for work around the farm too."

Maki listened intently as Nico began to describe learning how to ride the taller horse and how they became inseparable buddy's. Maki found herself enjoying when Nico told stories, not entirely for the stories themselves, but for the happiness she got to see in Nico's eyes. When in private, the shorter girl was able to be herself more. She wasn't afraid to let her feelings show around Maki, and in a way it made Maki feel closer to her than any of her other comrades. Sure, she was very close with Rin and Hanayo, but the two of them had a whole other relationship when it came to just each other. Maki felt that maybe what she began to feel with Nico was something like what they must have felt with each other. The redhead had to conclude that having someone like this was pretty nice, but she would never admit that aloud to anyone.

There was a bit more to it as well, because when Nico told stories, she began to get bubbly. She would make gestures as she recalled a moment of the tale, she would do deeper and higher voices for new people who entered the story, but what Maki enjoyed most was the smile that never left Nico's face when she spoke. It made her smile a small one of her own, and she grew very fond of moments like these with each other.

"Anyway, from there Kuro and I signed up for the upcoming tournament." Maki blinks, realizing she had zoned out while she stared at Nico.

"You entered a tournament?" Maki asks, standing properly and leaning against the stall door now instead.

"Uh, yeah. If you rank good in a tournament, getting a job at the castle is easy as pie." Nico says simply. "And because I'm amazing, I did make it. But Kuro helped a lot with that." Maki rolls her eyes.

"Right."

"Hey! It's all true!" Nico counters, before going back to petting her horse who had begun to snack on some of the hay.

"Oh! It's Nicocchi!" Both Maki and Nico whip their heads around and Nozomi grins at them, waving. Nico smiles, pulling her hand away from Kuro.

"Coming to help? Well you're too late. We did it all." She states.

"Rin, Hanayo and I did it all." Maki cuts in. "Nico was useless."

"HEY!" Nico glares at Maki. Nozomi laughs.

"Sounds about right."

"Nozomi!"

"Nicocchi~"

Nozomi laughs again when Nico's frown grows bigger.

"Excuse our interruption." Nozomi glances next to her as Eli steps inside the barn, and both Nico and Maki stand upright.

"Oh, the Captain!" Nico says, and Eli nods towards them.

"Maki. Nico."

"What can we help you with, Captain?" Maki asks, walking over to her. Eli holds up the parchment with a smile, and Nozomi grins a bit as she holds up the quill.

"The Queen has started the sign up sheet for the Summer Solstice festival's tournament. We're gathering the names of any staff who'd like to participate." Nico and Maki share a look, both of their eyes sparkling with excitement. Nico bounds over excitedly.

"Wait, already?!" Maki asks. "The Summer Solstice Festival isn't until late June. It's only mid May!." She points out.

"I wondered about the same thing." Eli replies. "So Nozomi and I went to the Queen first. It looks like there was a reply from one of the neighbouring kingdoms saying they would love to attend. So everyone from our kingdom will be facing off against other kingdoms."

Nico and Maki share a look before looking back to Eli.

"So, what kingdoms were invited?" Maki asks.

"A few, but we've only gotten a confirmed reply from Akiba.

Maki can feel her eyes widening slightly. She recalls the wanted posters of Nico and Nozomi that were around the kingdom, and she knows that theres a chance people will recognize them at the festival. What would happen if the current king of Akiba were to see them? Did the Queen realize the possible issues that might occur from this? Maki's quickly drawn away from her thoughts when Nico grabs the quill, then asks for the parchment from Eli.

"Oh! You seem eager, Nicocchi." Nozomi teases.

"Well, I'm not gunna pass up an opportunity to show off to the other kingdoms." Nico says matter of factly, smiling smugly before reading over the signed names and then adding hers to the bottom of the list. Eli laughs.

"If you don't want to take part in all the events, just specify which one you want to do next to your name. We'll make separate lists later for each of the events." Nico nods, scribbling down only one event next to her name. She turns her attention to Maki, holding the quill out to her.

"What about you, Maki-chan?" She voices.

Maki stares at her, unable to comprehend how calm Nico is able to be about the kingdom that had wanted posters for them up all around just casually attending a festival they were holding. It isn't until she reads Nico's expression that she really understands. Her smile was convincing enough, but it was clearly an act. Nico intended to do some investigating, and Maki knew the both of them would talk about this later. She reaches out, grabbing the quill in her own hands and looking at the parchment.

"O-Of course I'm entering!" She says. "I'm not gunna let my junior one up me!" She leans down, quickly signing her name underneath Nico's.

"I'm two years older than you!" Nico states.

"Yeah, but I'm higher ranked than you." Maki retorts. Nico is about to give her rude reply when Rin's voice cuts in.

"You're still arguing?!" She laughs, placing down a couple buckets and noticing Eli and Nozomi right away. "Ah! Good afternoon Captain! Nozomi-chan!" She beams.

"Afternoon Rin-chan! Hanayo-chan!" Noomi replies, before grinning cheekily. "Rin, I think it's safe to say that by now this is just their way of covering up their true feelings for each other."

"Nozomi!" Maki looks over at her with wide eyes, a tiny blush creeping on her face.

"Oh! That makes a lot of sense." Rin says, putting a hand on her chin and pretending to think about it.

"Not you too, Rin-chan." Maki sighs, handing the quill and parchment back to Eli. The blonde turns to Rin, who eyes the parchment curiously.

"Did you want to enter and compete in the tournament, Rin?" She asks. The curiosity vanishes from Rin's face and she laughs lightly.

"Nya, no thank you!" she states. "I'd rather watch and cheer on everyone with Kayo-chin!"

"I'll be sitting out too." Nozomi says, grinning a bit. "Lets cheer everyone on, Rin-chan. Hanayo-chan.!"

The three of them smile towards each other, before Hanayo picks up one of the buckets and heads over to a stall. Rin follows, and Nozomi decides to have a quick visit with her horse. Nico follows her, the two having a small conversation amongst each other. Eli and Maki observe the others, and the captain begins rolling up the parchment she had. Eli steals a couple glances towards Nozomi and Nico, watching as Nozomi's smile stays on her lips as Nico talks with her. She zones out a bit, her gaze lingering until Nozomi's returning her gaze. Eli turns away surprised, looking at the wall instead.

"Er, Captain?" Maki speaks. Eli looks over to her, giving Maki her full attention.

"Since those two are native to Akiba, don't you think we should keep a closer eye on them when the festival begins?" She asks quietly. "After all, if they had any other intentions, they might become clear at the festival."

Eli hums a bit, looking back over to Nico and Nozomi. The two of them were joined by Rin and Hanayo, Rin now talking animatedly with the three of them.

"We'll talk about this later on with Umi." Eli says quietly. She walks over to the other four, putting on a small smile. "Sorry to interrupt girls, but Nozomi and I still have a lot of guards to visit." Nozomi smiles apologetically to the other girls.

"Looks like duty calls." She laughs, stepping away from them and to Eli. The two of them say goodbye, and exit the stables.

"I think we're all done here as well." Hanayo says. "Thank you for your hard work, everyone!"

Maki and Nico are the first to leave, and the both of them walk in silence as they head towards the castle. Maki opens the door for Nico, who steps inside. She follows, closing the door behind her.

"I have to go see her majesty, Maki-chan." Nico says quietly. "Is that alright?" Maki gives her a small nod to confirm it is, and she gives her a small, genuine smile, and Maki can feel the image of it burning into her memory.

"Thanks, Maki-chan. I'll see you at dinner." She turns down the hall, walking away as quickly as her feet can take her without bursting into a run. Maki watches silently, wondering if it was the right thing to do as Nico rounds the corner.

* * *

Umi was walking up the stairway towards the Queen's quarters, having delivered the list of foods the Queen had wanted for the festival next month to the kitchen staff. Being the Captain for a day really wasn't all that much for her, but she did miss the company of Honoka and Kotori. She decided after this, she'd pay them a small visit before going on to her next task of the day.

As she reached the top of the stairs, she took a few strides, raising her fist to knock on the door. A shout suddenly catches her attention, causing her to freeze her fist in mid air.

"Your majesty, PLEASE!" is the first words that reach Umi's ears. "If Akiba sends the trio I KNOW will be there, she's going to be in danger!"

The blue haired girl furrows her brows in confusion, lowering her hand and moving closer to the door. She can't hear a word that the Queen is saying, her voice was too low and muffled by the thick door. But the reply she hears is clear and loud, and it doesn't take her long to learn that it's Nico's voice she had been hearing.

"I truly am grateful, your majesty. You've been so kind throughout all this but I can't just ignore it all and pretend like nothings wrong. I still have my vow to uphold, and I don't intend to let anything stop me if something happens."

"Vow?" Umi mumbles to herself. She furrows her eyebrows more, wanting to hear what the Queen was about to reply with, until another voice cuts in.

"Umi-chan!" Nozomi says excitedly. Umi turns to see Nozomi, with Eli next to her. She pulls away from the door, offering them a small smile.

"Is the Queen busy?" Eli asks. Umi opens her mouth to reply, but the door in front of them opens up, revealing Nico to the three of them. She nods to Eli and Umi, acknowledging them. Her eyes lock briefly with Nozomi's, before she walks away, heading down the stairs with a small frown on her face.

"Oh, Sonoda-san, Captain." The Queen says, a smile on her face as she stands in her door way. "How can I help you?"

The two knights look to the smiling Queen, and Eli hands over the rolled up parchment with a smile.

"Nozomi and I have asked every guard and knight in the castle, your Majesty. There's a full list there for you to review, and Nozomi and I will begin rewriting it and organizing it whenever you finish reviewing it." She says. The Queen smiles, thanking her before turning to Umi.

"The kitchen staff says the list of requested foods won't be a problem at all, your Majesty." Umi adds quickly. The Queen hums pleased.

"Thank you, both of you." She says. Eli smiles in return, about to excuse both her and Nozomi when the Queen continues.

"Captain, would you mind if I borrowed your wife for a bit?" Eli is a bit surprised, sharing a small look with Nozomi.

"Not at all, your Majesty." she replies. The Queen smiles, and steps inside her room. Nozomi follows, giving a small smile to Umi and Eli before shutting the door quietly. Once the door is closed and Umi and Eli are alone, Umi steps over to the blonde.

"I believe I may have heard something I wasn't supposed to," She starts. "We need to find Maki right away, I don't think this can wait." Eli's gaze turns serious, and she nods.

"I'll find Maki, then head straight to your room."

The two of them walk quickly, stepping down the stairs carefully and swiftly. They part ways at the end of the steps, Umi heading off to her room and Eli beginning to hunt down Maki. Whatever Umi heard had to be very important if she decided the three of them needed to meet right then. With quicker steps, Eli begins to jog, all thoughts on finding Maki as soon as possible.


	7. Moments

**AN:** I have a bad habit of not leaving authors notes on fics here and I figured I should change that a bit. So hello! Welcome back readers, and thank you for taking interest n my story! This chapter is the last bout of fluff and relationship development before the biggest adventure of the story happens! Please look forward to it!

Thank you so much for all kind words, favourites and views on this story! It means a lot;;!

* * *

It's just before dinner by the time the trio was able to meet and discuss everything. Umi's room was simple and decorated in royal blues. Her bed was at the side of the room next to the window, the early morning light always being able to shine onto the bed to help her wake properly for morning routines. At the other end of the room next to the fireplace was where Eli stood, not too far off from it was Umi's work table, where Umi sat in her chair. On the walls were various types of swords Umi herself had made, and beside her door was the dresser that stored all of her clothes. Next to her work table were two more chairs, which usually seated any guests that had decided to stop by. Eli and Maki had chosen not to sit, Maki staying near the door incase someone came to disturb them, and Eli was never able to sit down when it revolved around very serious topics. Eli and Maki hung on every word Umi said to them about the portions of the conversation she had heard earlier that day. Eli poked at the fire in the fireplace, concern etched on her features as Umi wrapped it all up. The three girls were quiet, until Eli finally broke the silence.

"So, based on what you heard, Yazawa Nico truly does have an ulterior motive here." Eli says in a serious tone. Umi nods, staring directly at Eli.

"It looks like it." She states. "She's clearly got some sort of issue with the Akiba kingdom. It must be part of the reason she fled here."

"That could be possible." Maki adds, thinking about the posters she had seen all those weeks ago. "But Akiba won't be able to do anything about that here. We're trying to avoid wars, not start one."

"As long as Nozomi and I are married, no wars will happen." the Captain states, pulling the poker away from the flames and leaning it gently against the wall. The crackling of the fire is all that is heard for a small moment, before Umi speaks again.

"Is it safe to assume Nozomi is apart of this as well?" She asks Eli. The blonde frowns.

"I wouldn't know." She admits, crossing her arms.

"Why don't you ask her?" Maki says bluntly, getting an incredulous stare from Eli. Maki sighs, looking at her senior with a serious gaze.

"Look Captain, you're the closest one to Nozomi aside from Nico. I'm doing my part in trying to read and learn more about her, why don't you do the same with Nozomi?"

Eli begins pondering it, thinking back to all the time spent alone between her and Nozomi. More often than not, they were work focused. They never strayed off topic, and Eli couldn't say a lot about Nozomi outside of her work performance. The two may have been 'married', but Eli didn't know the first thing about how to get to know her 'wife' outside of staring at her (which the blonde had been caught doing many times.) She knew Nozomi liked doing tarot readings, she knew Nozomi was very diligent, and very stubborn. Eli found that Nozomi was always quick to help with any task she had (but Eli wasn't too sure if that was the way she was, or if because she knew that was what her job was.) The more she thought about it, the more she realized Nozomi still had a lot to learn about herself too. Eli wasn't exactly open, and as that thought hit her she furrowed her brow a bit. Friends didn't normally keep things from each other, did they? She internally sighed. Being a good friend might be the one thing the talented knight was bad at.

"Alright." She eventually says. "You're right, Maki. This is the best option we've got right now."

"We've still got quite a few weeks until the festival, and frankly, I don't think we'll learn much more until then. For now, we'll put what Umi learnt under out main priorities." Eli uncrosses her arms, stepping away from the fire place. "If we learn anything new about Akiba and these people Nico see's as a threat, we'll arrange a meeting between the three of us on the evenings we learn this information. Alright?"

"Yes Captain." Umi and Maki chorus. Eli makes her way to the door, Maki stepping out of the way and Umi standing from her chair.

"Are you heading back to work, Capain?" Umi asks. Eli shakes her head.

"On any other day, I would be. But I'm sure Nozomi wouldn't be too happy I decided to work instead of meeting her at dinner." Maki and Umi share a knowing gaze, before Umi gives her a small smile.

"Married life has changed you, Captain." She says with slight fondness. Eli is a bit surprised by the comment, and blushes slightly. Umi quickly continues. "Not that that is a bad thing, I think it's quite good. Resting well is a key part in staying in top form."

"I agree with Umi." Maki comments, leaving Eli to blush a bit more.

"Yes, well." Eli clears her throat, opening the door. "You both will behave the same way once you're married."

Both Maki and Eli exit the room after saying goodbye to Umi, then make their way down the hallway together silently. As if timed perfectly, Nozomi and Nico had entered the long corridor, Nozomi listening to Nico as she talked animatedly about something. She glanced over, seeing both Eli and Maki and giving the two of them a small smile. Eli returned it, lifting her hand in a tiny wave as she began to make her way to them. Maki followed, and once Nico noticed Nozomi was no longer paying attention, she looked over to the source and stood straighter.

"Good evening Captain!" Is the first thing she exclaims. "Nozomi and I were just doing some rounds while you and Maki-chan were busy." Eli smiles slightly.

"Good work, Nico." Eli says in approval. "Is everything as it should be?"

"So far." Nico confirms. Maki steps up from behind Eli, looking to Nozomi.

"I'll take over patrol duty with Nico-chan." She says. Nozomi grins a bit.

"Oh? Maki-chan wants some alone time with Nicocchi~?" She teases, covering a hand over her coy smile. Maki's eyes widen a bit before she narrows them.

"I-I was just offering since it's your day off!" She exclaims, lifting her hand up to twirl a bit of her hair. "That's all! P-plus, Nico's my subordinate. It's only natural we do our jobs together!"

"She's right, Nozomi." Eli says. Nozomi laughs a light, airy laugh.

"I know, it's just fun to tease Maki-chan." She confesses, before stepping away from Nico. "Shall we be going to dinner then, Elichi?" She continues, and Eli nods.

"We'll be early, but it'll be alright. We can go over today's practice." Eli comments, and Nozomi smiles. The two of them give a short farewell to Nico and Maki before making their way down the hall. Nico continued walking the opposite way, and Maki stepped after her. They were silent until Nico entered a new stair well. She walked closer to Maki, talking in a hushed voice.

"The Queen assures that Akiba won't be able to do anything to Nozomi or I." She begins. "The main reason is Akiba hadn't distributed a letter or wanted posters to any of the surrounding kingdoms. Otonokizaka apparently hasn't received any letters from Akiba since March, aside from the tournament response letter."

Maki listens intently, nodding a bit in understanding. So she had gone to see the Queen to be sure her and Nozomi would be safe from the wanted posters. Nico continues as they descend the stair case.

"Furthermore, she says that this is an Akiba kingdom issue and Otonokizaka won't get involved. The only way the Queen will believe any accusations against us is if the ruler can provide good evidence."

"That's good then." Maki says quietly. She notices Nico still has a nervous aura about her, despite the Queen confirming everything would be okay during the tournament.

"Everything will be fine, Nico-chan." she adds on, looking ahead. "If the Queen is confidant it will be, then I wouldn't question it too much." The dark haired girl is quiet for a brief moment, stopping on the step she stood on and grabbing the bottom of Maki's tunic between her fingers. Maki pauses walking, glancing over to the older girl in confusion.

"It's not that I don't think everything will be fine." She mumbles. "I do believe the Queen. But I can't stop feeling paranoid. I'm not going to just hold my breath and pretend everything is rainbows and sunshine, you know?" She looks up at Maki, her ruby eyes piercing into Maki's amethyst ones. Maki's eyes softened. This was the first time she had seen Nico even a tiny bit scared. It wasn't something she enjoyed seeing from the smaller girl. Nico was the confidant, slightly bossy and whiny knight who had nothing better to do than get on Maki's nerves, but here she stood with her eyes staring into Maki's with a worried expression on her face.

The red haired girl nervously glances to the side and out the window, staring at the clear sky. With a small bit of courage, she closes her eyes and lifts her hand, putting her hand on Nico's shoulder. The shorter girl was confused, until Maki looked back at her, her expression going from the embarrassed one she had into a serious one. Her voice was serious as she spoke just above a whisper.

"Do what you need to, Nico-chan." Nico's eyes widen a bit, before nodding.

"Of course I will..!" She says in a louder voice. "Y-you don't need to tell me that!" She huffs a bit, letting go of Maki's tunic and stepping past her. Maki resists the urge to roll her eyes, but she begins to smile as she follows the other girl, unaware that the shorter girl only paces ahead wore a tiny smile of her own.

* * *

The evening went by quickly, and Eli had decided to join Nozomi on her post dinner garden visit. The two of them walked through it to the gazebo, Nozomi pausing to examine flowers that caught her attention. It impressed Eli that even though Nozomi came to the garden every evening, she always found something new and different that caught her eye. Both of them never said a word as they silently walked through the fully bloomed flowers and large plants.

Eli paid close attention to her partner, who moved to sit on a bench in the gazebo. She contemplated all the things she could ask to learn more about her, and had been preparing to ask her a number of questions. But for some odd reason, Eli couldn't bring herself to ask anything. She could only gaze at Nozomi with slight wonder. Eli finally looked away, taking a seat on the bench next to Nozomi and deciding to put her focus on the flowers and gardens just outside the area they sat.

Being social really was something Eli had difficulties with. She began to wonder if she could even bring herself to ask Nozomi a simple question that wasn't work related. She continued spacing out, over thinking and stressing about such a simple yet difficult task. Nozomi's voice soon catches her attention, and the blonde looks from the garden to her.

"Are you ready for the main event?" Nozomi asks with a small grin, and Eli quirks her eyebrow.

"Main event?" She asks, and Nozomi nods, turning her body to face Eli.

"That's right. The main event." Nozomi looks back to the garden, smiling at the first sign of a flickering light. Eli also does, and she finds herself surprised to see the same light.

"What on earth...?" She pauses her sentence, unable to believe the multiple amounts of lights that soon begin blinking in front of them. It suddenly hits her exactly what they were, and Eli doesn't stop her surprised expression from showing.

"Are those fireflies?" She asks, a bit of wonder to her voice. Nozomi laughs lightly.

"That's right." Nozomi says softly, gazing out to the garden with a small smile. "The garden gives off such a wonderful energy, and with how well kept it is, it isn't surprising that a lot of them make it their home."

Eli smiles fondly, leaning against the railing as she watched the bugs signal one another.

"Harasho." She whispers, lifting a hand to brush a strand of hair behind her ear.

The two of them sit together watching the show the little bugs put on silently with content smiles on their faces. Eli couldn't believe that fireflies would choose this garden as their home. She had always thought the bugs sticked close to the safety of the forest, just like back home. She began to feel an overwhelming nostalgic feeling of a time when she was younger, when her and Alisa would spend the evening trying to capture as many of the little bugs as possible. Her smile softened at the memory. She truly missed her little sister and her forest home.

"I don't think I've felt like this in a very long time." Eli suddenly says. Nozomi glances to her, silently waiting for her to elaborate. Eli doesn't dare take her eyes off of them as she continues.

"When I was younger, my sister and I would spend many Spring and Summer nights playing amongst the fireflies." She tells the purple haired girl. She reached one of her gloved hands out into the garden, watching as a bug flew around it cautiously. "We would spend hours trying to catch them, or playing games around them. It's something we always enjoyed as kids."

The bug landed carefully into Eli's open palm and she gently closed it, bringing her hand up and holding it between her and Nozomi. Nozomi's eyes drifted down to her hand as Eli slowly opened it up, revealing the tiny bug. Her eyes sparkled with wonder as she looked at the small creature, and Eli's eyes found their way to Nozomi's face as she watched the tiny little bug. She watched with a light fondness as Nozomi hesitantly held her hand close to Eli's, the little bug crawling from the blondes hand into hers. The purple haired girl brought it closer to her face, examining it with mild curiosity. Eli watched her with a soft gaze, before an idea made its way into her thoughts. When the bug flew out of Nozomi's hands and back towards the garden, she took that moment to grab Nozomi's hand.

"Let's get closer to them." The blonde says, pulling Nozomi up and leading her out of the gazebo and onto the pathway.

"What if we scare them off?!" Nozomi asks, a bit surprised from being pulled from her spot and into the garden path way.

"Don't worry about that, if we stay still enough, they'll come around." Eli replies.

The two of them stopped half way down the path, Eli never once letting go of Nozomi's hands as they now stood amongst the flowers and fireflies. Eli looked around excitedly, admiring how forward the bugs were as they flew around the two of them. She watched with slight wonder, feeling as if she was just a young teenager back in the forest, with no responsibilities but the ones to her family. A sharp inhale brings Eli's attention away from her thoughts, and she turns to Nozomi. Eli's suddenly breathless, and her cheeks heat up as the sight ahead of her made her heart skip a beat.

Nozomi stood still as the fireflies flew around her, her vibrant hair attracting them all to them. The tiny blinking lights surrounded the two of them, creating an atmosphere in the air that Eli had never been familiar with. Nozomi's tiny laugh and closed eyes among the flowers and fireflies was something Eli didn't think she'd ever forget, not in a million years. The knight's lips smiled warmly at the sight, warmth spreading through her entire being. She squeezed Nozomi's hand softly, before a small giggle escaped her own lips. When Nozomi's eyes opened, her smile brightened as she watched the fireflies flying between and around her and Eli. Their eyes met, and it was then that Eli could feel the complete bliss and happiness that came with sharing something wonderful with somebody else. It was a feeling that Eli couldn't believe she had lived for so long at the castle without ever once feeling this happiness.

Without thinking, the blonde speaks in a quiet tone, only audible to both her and Nozomi.

"I haven't felt this much joy in so long." Nozomi comfortingly returned Eli's hand squeeze, before entwining their fingers together.

"Me either." she mumbles. The two stare at each other for a bit longer, before the setting sun finally reaches its last minutes of light. Eli eventually glances away, her smile lessening at the observation.

"I think it's time we head to bed now, Nozomi." She says. "We have an early day tomorrow."

"Alright, Elichi." Nozomi responds, her voice not conveying any sadness she may have felt.

The two of them reluctantly let go of each others hands, before walking back down the path towards the castle. The darkness of night began enveloping the garden, and Nozomi spared one last glance to it all before following Eli through the castle doors. The halls were as quiet as they always were at this time of night, Eli and Nozomi being the only ones walking through them. Eli was brought back to her earlier dilemma of finding out how to get to know Nozomi more. There were so many things she could say and ask, but what would be the best way to do it?

As they reached their room, the thought finally hit Eli. It wasn't like the two of them were complete strangers anymore, they were closer. They were friends. Strangers didn't have magical moments amongst fireflies in a beautiful garden at twilight together. People who were close with each other did. She walked over to her dresser, picking up her night wear and heading towards the changing screen. The blonde quickly changed, determining exactly what she would do: she would ask Nozomi if they could get to know each other better.

That's how it worked, right? You asked other people if you could get to know them better. She walked out from behind the screen, and Nozomi smiled at her before walking behind it next. Eli sat at her table, picking up her brush and letting her hair loose from it ponytail. She began to brush her hair, her mind wandering off on the best way possible to ask Nozomi if it would be okay. She ended up so distracted in her thoughts, it takes a shout of her name to bring her away from them.

"ELICHI!"

"AH! YES? WHAT IS IT?!" The blonde almost dropped her brush, looking worriedly over to Nozomi. Said girl had her eyebrow quirked up, an amused smirk on her features as she now wore her own night gown.

"I asked you if we had morning rounds tomorrow." She says, stepping away from the changing screen and towards her own hair brush. After picking it up and letting her own hair loose, she glanced to her partner.

"Is something the matter? You seemed a bit out of it." She asks in a concerned tone.

"Ah well, actually," Eli started, taking this as the perfect opportunity to ask Nozomi what she had been trying to all night. Her face flushes a light pink and she suddenly feels a bit shy. She makes eye contact with Nozomi, watching as the other girl pays attention to her while she slips her long hair into a side pony tail. She then takes a seat on her side of the bed, not saying a word.

"We've been friends for a couple weeks now." Eli continues, putting her own brush down and keeping eye contact with Nozomi. "and, uhm- well.."

Nozomi doesn't press for Eli to continue when she pauses, unable to find the right words she wants to say. She gives a reassuring smile towards the blonde, patiently waiting for her to finish her sentence.

"Well, I just was... I was wanting to know more about you, is all." Eli mentally pats herself on the back, proud she was finally able to voice it.

Nozomi gives her a surprised blink, before smiling wider.

"Sure." She replies. "In return, may I know more about Elichi too?" Her amused smile is back on her features, and Eli smiles.

"Of course. I wouldn't expect you to tell me about yourself without learning about me as well."

The blonde stands up from her seat, walking over to the fireplace in their room. She picks up the metal poker from the side, poking around the pit before throwing a bit of dry wood and kindling into it. The blonde then picked up a new piece of paper, holding it over a candle and watching as it ignited. She carefully places it in the center with the paper, watching it all light up and getting a small, nice fire started.

"You always do that every night." Nozomi comments, watching Eli. "Does it really get that cold during the summer evenings?"

After poking the new fire a bit, Eli stands, smiling lightly.

"No, it can be quite warm some days." She answers. "But the night can be very dark, and if something happens, we have to be able to see where our weapons and clothes are." Nozomi nods, understanding. Eli was glad, because she didn't want to also admit that sometimes the dark creeped her out and that the fire was a way to help her sleep when she got scared.

"I had always thought it was because you didn't like the dark." Nozomi says. When Eli's face becomes surprised, Nozomi grins a bit. Before the blonde can ask how she knew, Nozomi continues. "You always make sure to be inside the castle before the sun sets, and after watching you start a fire every night since I've gotten here, I kind of put two and two together."

"Ah... well, I guess that would make sense." Eli says, smiling a bit embarrassed. "That too, is also part of it. I-it's not that big a fear! It stems form where I grew up. Wolves and bears often creep around the forest at night, it wasn't uncommon for us to hear them. I can admit that while I've grown out of it a bit, the dark can still make me feel more... vulnerable."

She gets up from the floor, walking over to the bed and sitting herself down on the bed. Nozomi watches her, her smile still on her lips.

"That's alright. Everyone has their own fears." She says. "As long as you have ways of coping with them, I think you'll be fine."

Eli nods, agreeing with her silently. They both listen to the crackle of the fire, and Eli begins to feel a bit unsure of what she should ask Nozomi. Maybe she should ask about any fears she had, and if there was anything she did to cope with them. She ponders it quietly, and soon Nozomi speaks again.

"You mentioned earlier a little bit about your family." Nozomi says quietly, looking from the fire to Eli. "What's your family like?"

"Ah, my family huh?" Eli says a bit, amusement in her voice. "My family is a small group of very dedicated people. My grandmother, mother, Alisa and I are all quite the handful when we put our minds to it."

"Is Alisa your sister?" Nozomi asks again, making herself comfortable as she listens to Eli talk.

"She is! She still lives at home with my grandmother and parents, but she wants to visit in the fall."

Eli continues, beginning to talk more about her home village and what her family did. Nozomi learnt that Eli grew up in the forest village located south west of the castle town. It was only a few days travel away, but it was quite a peaceful little community that took pride in what little goods it produced for the kingdom. Eli spoke with great fondness about her little sister, the inn that her family helped build just outside the large wood, and the small yet cozy pub that her father and her shared their first drink in.

From there, Eli began to talk about how a visit from the royal guards looking for new recruits had gotten her interested in becoming a knight. After many years of training and practicing, she had finally set out for the castle town, saying good bye to her family and her home and saying hello to the promise of a new adventure. It had been a long journey, but she had made it and worked very hard to get where she was today. She sent letters often back home, talking about the castle and achievements she had made, and in return her little sister would send letters back that updated her on the tiny village and how everybody was.

The knight didn't really understand it, but talking to Nozomi about her home life and past was felt very easy. Eli only had her family growing up, and even when she was recruited as a knight and began working here, she made it her main goal to focus on work and not making relationships with anyone outside of that. While it did benefit her and she had become Captain, it also had its downsides such as making her seem very intimidating to others who were too shy to try to approach the captain with anything other than work. But talking to Nozomi was different; with Nozomi she could say anything with so much ease, she felt like she could tell her absolutely anything and Nozomi would listen earnestly, just as she was now. Maybe the reason Eli could talk so easily with her was because of the warm smile she would wear, or from the happiness she could see in her eyes as she listened to the stories.

Not long after finishing her story, Eli yawned.

"Tired, Elichi?" Nozomi asks, and Eli frowns.

"I wish I wasn't. I haven't gotten to ask you a question yet." She frowns, disappointed. Nozomi laughs.

"Why don't we go to bed, and in the morning we can continue? You can ask the first question." Eli smiles at the proposal.

"I can agree to that." She replies. She glances over to the fire, making sure that it was still burning well enough.

After confirming what she wanted to, both girls stand up off of the bed, pulling back the covers and lying down in their designated spots. Eli whispers a small good night to Nozomi, who returns it with her own good night murmur. Just as the blonde began to drift off, she heard Nozomi giggle a bit, whispering in a soft voice.

"I guess the reason you sometimes hug me in your sleep is because you're used to cuddling Alisa at night time~?"

"N-Nozomi!"

"Just kidding~!"

* * *

Morning comes soon, and both girls rise early and prepare themselves for the new work day. As promised, Nozomi tells Eli she can ask anything she'd like, continuing their 'Getting to know each other' game. Eli ponders what to ask as she slips her arm guards on and prepares her chest plate. Nozomi is completely finished, waiting by the door as she watches Eli slip the gold armour on, fastening it perfectly. Her sword is soon sheathed and attached to her belt, and she makes her way to the door where Nozomi stands.

"All set?" Nozomi asks with a smile. Eli nods.

"All set. I'm still not sure what I want to ask you yet, but I'm sure I'll think of something on the way to breakfast." Nozomi lets out a light laugh, opening the door for Eli.

"Take your time, Elichi."

They begin walking towards the dining hall, and a question finally hits Eli. She looks over to Nozomi with a bit of excitement, voicing the thought that had hit her.

"What was it you did back in Akiba?" Eli asks curiously. Nozomi's reply is almost instant, as if she had anticipated this ask.

"Nothing really," She begins. "As you know, I was a noble. My parents were apart of the late King and Queen's court."

Eli began to think about the conversation with her, Umi and Maki the day before. If Nozomi was just a noblewoman, there was probably very little she could do in any possible plans Nico had. Or so she wanted to believe, but Eli would be stupid to judge that so quickly. Nobles may not have been royalty, but they had money, which gave them quite a bit of power over some.

"Have you ever visited Akiba, Captain?" Nozomi asks. Eli shakes her head.

"We haven't been able to safely travel to Akiba in years." Eli says. "Just before I became Captain, we had been invited to a festival that was being held for one of the royals." Eli furrows her eyebrows, trying to remember exactly what it was. "It was a couple years ago, but we had to decline the invite due to a threat that had been made to the princess."

Nozomi only nods, her eyes forward as she brought a hand to her chin.

"Hmm, I wonder which festival that was." she muses. "But, since you don't know, Akiba's castle town is located just before a great big mountain. It was a lovely area to live around. The air was always brisk and clear, and mornings could be chilly, but they were still quite beautiful."

Eli had only read about mountains before, but hearing about them from someone who lived near one made her a bit curious. Visiting a mountain seemed like it might be fun.

"The mountain even had a hot spring!" Nozomi says excitedly. "It was very large, and it attracted a lot of travellers."

"A hot spring?" Eli looks at her, one of her eyebrows raised up.

"Yes, a hot spring." Nozomi answers, a playful smile on her face. "A hot spring is a natural pool of water that is heated by the earth itself. One of natures finest creations if you ask me." Eli's eyes widen a bit, imagining a constantly heated pool of water.

"Harasho." she says absentmindedly, and Nozomi laughs.

"Captain, your adorable side is showing." Nozomi teases, and Eli looks at her slightly embarrassed.

"Nozomi..." She mumbles, and the violet haired squire just flashes her a small grin.

The both of them enter the dining hall, and Nozomi glances at Eli as she begins composing herself again.

"Elichi, can we continue our little game tonight?" She asks. "I think it'd be better if we focused on work for now."

Eli nods.

"Yeah, okay."

The two of them walk over to their usual breakfast table, which had been occupied by only one person at the time. Honoka sat there munching on a roll happily, and upon noticing Nozomi and Eli, she gave them both an excited wave. She swallowed her bread quickly, grinning as the couple too their seats across from her.

"Good morning Captain! Good morning Nozomi-chan!" She beams at them, her attention turning to a few maids who began to set down various other plates and pitchers of water.

"Good morning, Honoka-chan." Nozomi greets the ginger haired girl.

"Good morning." Eli adds with a small smile. "How were your morning rounds?"

"Ehhh, very quiet." Honoka responds, before quickly sitting up properly. "Ah, I mean, nothing out of the ordinary! Everything was as it should be, and there was no suspicious activity sighted by the night staff."

Eli only nods in approval, and Nozomi laughs lightly. Honoka puts her roll down on her plate, brushing a bit of crumbs from her tunic before speaking more.

"Did you guys sleep good?!" her smile is contagious, and Nozomi can't help but grin along with her.

"I know I did!" The violet haired girl says cheekily. "With Elichi snuggled up so close, it kept me warm and cozy~" Eli was glad she hadn't been drinking any water, as it probably would have been spewed across the table. She gives Nozomi a chiding stare, a tiny hint of pink to her cheeks.

"Nozomi." she says in a warning tone, and the violet haired girl laughs, not saying anything more.

"Oh! I didn't know the captain liked to cuddle!" Honoka grins. She leans in closely, beckoning for the two of them to do it as well. "Don't tell Umi-chan I told you this, but she's a bit fan of cuddling at night as well~"

"Really? Umi-chan is?!" Nozomi asks, and even Eli is surprised by this information. Honoka laughs, leaning back on her stool and nodding.

"She's really shy about things like that in public, but when Kotori-chan asks, Umi can never say no."

Nozomi smirks a bit, leaning forward on the table a bit more.

"So, am I right to guess that you and Umi-chan have something more than a guard and princess relationship with the princess~?"

Honoka blushes lightly, and Eli scolds Nozomi for the sudden accusation. Nozomi only leans back off of the table, her playful smirk still on her lips as she watches Honoka wiggle nervously in her seat. Eli turns to the ginger haired girl, sighing a bit.

"Honoka, you don't have to answer that." She says, giving a warning stare to her squire. "Nozomi just likes to tease and get a rise from her comrades." Nozomi only flashes Eli a tiny grin.

"Aha... well," Honoka glances around a bit, before grinning sheepishly and rubbing the back of her neck. "She's right though."

Eli's eyes widen and Nozomi gapes a bit, it soon becoming a wide grin as she leans back on the table.

"Oh! So you ARE!"

"Shh! Nozomi!" Eli scolds again, leaning in and pulling Nozomi upright.

Honoka puts another roll onto her plate and fills her glass up with some water, then clears her throat.

"Before you came here, Captain, Umi-chan and I were already apart of the forces in a way." Honoka began. "Umi-chan and I pretty much grew up with the princess, that is." She glanced between the two of them, smiling lightly. "I could tell you the story, if you'd like?"

Nozomi and Eli share a small look, and before Eli can even object, Nozomi answers with a quick "Yes please." Honoka smiles, taking a sip of water and then putting her glass down.

"I guess I'll start from the very beginning then! It all started a really long time ago, when Umi-chan, Kotori-chan and I were six years old..."

Honoka begins to get into a lot of detail. Both her and Umi were children of the castle town, and had grown up as neighbours. Umi was the daughter of the blacksmith, and Honoka was the daughter of the baker. Every day they would help out their parents, and if they were good girls, they were allowed to go out and play with each other before dinner time. Honoka and Umi played all the time, they had their own wooden swords, and Honoka would always lead Umi around the town in high spirits on fun pretend adventures. The two were inseparable and their favourite place to play was right around the castle. They knew every route to and from it, and had memorized the paths like the back of their tiny hands.

One day, the castle gates had opened and out came a small carriage. Umi and Honoka had watched in excitement as the Queen had excited the castle just when they had arrived to play. In her excitement, Honoka had dragged Umi after it, wanting to follow it and see just what the Queen had planned to do in town that day. They had unfortunately lost sight of the carriage quickly, and both girls had decided to go home after being a bit disappointed.

After arriving home, Umi had went straight inside to work. Honoka on the other hand, sat outside munching on a snack her mother had given her. She watched people walking too and from the street with a happy smile. Maybe she didn't know what the Queen was doing, but she got to eat her favourite snack, so it was still a good day.

The sound of a carriage and horses quickly brought Honoka out of her food haze, and she watched with excited eyes as the carriage pulled itself to a stop in front of the tailor across the way from them. In her excitement, she dropped her bread and ran to Umi's house, shouting her name at the top of her lungs and running inside to drag the now annoyed girl out of her house. Her annoyance didn't stay long, and both grinned at the sight of the carriage that stood before them.

"I wonder what the Queen's doing out here!" Honoka had said. In that moment, movement had been seen through the window of the carriage, and both Umi and Honoka were greeted by the sight of the princess. Her hair was tied in the style she still wore to this day, and Honoka had gasped really loudly the moment Kotori made eye contact with them.

"Umi-chan! Umi-chan it's the princess!" Honoka whispered to Umi, who could only nod dumbly. "Lets say hi!"

Umi couldn't stop as Honoka walked up to the carriage excitedly, looking up to Kotori and waving.

"Hi there princess! Whatcha doing out here!?" Kotori was a bit surprised, but she leant out the open window, beaming down to Honoka.

"Hi!" she said. "I'm out on.. on important royal duties...?" she ended it in a questioning tone, and Honoka laughed.

"What kind of duties are those?" she asks,tilting her head. Before Kotori could say anything, Umi was there in an instant.

"Honoka! You can't just talk to the princess like that!" Her friend scolded, and Honoka laughed innocently, before peering up to Kotori in surprise, as if only remembering that she was a princess at that moment.

"AAHH! I-IM SORRY PRINCESS!" she shouted, bowing her head in forgiveness. Kotori had giggled, before smiling down at the two of them.

"It's okay!" She said. Her smile soon turned into a small frown. "I wish I could talk with you down there. It's boring in here." She comments.

"Why not come out here then?" Honoka asks.

"Honoka, we can't disturb the princess..." Umi says nervously.

"I really want to come out there." Kotori says longingly, looking between the two. "Can I come out?" She had asked them shyly. Umi and Honoka shared a look, and before Umi could protest, Honoka had beamed up to Kotori.

"Of course you can! You can play with me and Umi-chan!"

At those words, Kotori's eyes lit up, and her bright child like smile had swayed any unsure thoughts from Umi's mind. Kotori quickly exited the carriage, and as she stood next to the two other girls, she smiled even more.

"I'm Honoka Kousaka!" Honoka introduced. "This is Umi-chan!" She gestures to Umi, who bowed a bit.

"U-Umi Sonada, your majesty." Kotori giggles a bit at Umi's formal tone.

"I'm Kotori Minami!" she replied. "It's lovely to meet you both!" She curtseyed, and Honoka let out a loud "oooh!"

"That was so formal, Kotori-chan!" she said excitedly. Kotori grinned proudly, standing straighter.

"Thanks!" she beamed. "I've been practicing!"

The three girls ended up talking a lot. Honoka and Umi learnt that they were the same age as the princess, and that the princess loved to play outside and do things that both of them enjoyed doing too. It was in that first meeting Umi and Honoka realized that even though Kotori was royal, she was still a little kid, just like them. Honoka told Kotori if she ever got permission, she was allowed to play with them anytime she wanted. Kotori had been so excited, she hugged the both of them tightly.

In their excited moments, the three little girls didn't realize the carriage had begun moving, and it wasn't until it was far down the road that they saw. Kotori's eyes had widened in panic, and she began to cry out of fear. Honoka and Umi knew exactly what they needed to do, and without panicking, they brought Kotori over to the Honoka's bakery.

Honoka smuggled a sweet snack for the princess while Umi ran to Honoka's room, grabbing her toy wooden sword. After getting it, they snuck to Umi's house, where Kotori saw the layout of a blacksmith's shop for the first time ever. She looked at everything with childlike curiosity as Honoka ran to Umi's room, getting Umi's sword for her as Umi explained what everything in the shop did. One the both of them had their weapons, they grinned towards their new friend.

"Don't worry, Kotori-chan!" Honoka beamed at her. "Umi-chan and I will protect you and take you home!"

Kotori had sniffled, wiping her eyes before giving them both a small smile.

"Thank you!" she whimpered. "T-thank you so much!"

Both Honoka and Umi had taken one of Kotori's hands in their own, and the trio traveled determinedly towards the castle, Honoka leading them through the safest way they knew. Kotori held tightly onto their hands, her fear of never getting home safely soon becoming excitement as she traveled with the two of them back to where her home was. She asked about different shops they would pass, and Umi and Honoka would always tell her what they were and who lived there.

It didn't take them long before they reached the castle, and it seemed it had been just in time. The guards were opening the gate, ready to turn over the town to find the princess. Kotori shouted excitedly the moment she saw someone she recognized, and they had greeted her with immense happiness.

"Your mother is worried sick!" The guard had said to her, and Kotori looked down, ashamed.

"Im really really sorry." Kotori apologized to the older woman. "I didn't mean to worry her! But Honoka-chan and Umi-chan helped me home! They kept me safe the whole time! They're my heroes!"

The guard had curiously looked over to the other two girls, smiling gratefully to the tiny heroes who wielded tiny swords. She knelt down to their level, bowing her head and thanking the two brave and valiant girls for bringing the princess back home safely. After that, the knight had sent someone to let the Queen know the Princess was back safe and sound. When the guard told Kotori she had to say good bye, it took almost all of her to do it without tearing up. In the heat of the moment, Honoka brought her oldest friend and newest friend together in a tight hug, and promised Kotori that it wouldn't be forever.

The next day, the Queen had visited the both of them herself, thanking both of them for helping Kotori get back home safe and sound. As a reward, she told the two girls they were welcome inside the castle once every week to come play with Kotori. From there, the trio had grown to be best friends. They visited at the same time every week, and they always had a lot of fun and hated saying good bye.

Years had gone by, and the girls were now in their teens. Honoka and Umi had begun training to join the castle knights. Leaving Kotori had gotten harder and harder each week, and the both of them worked hard training each other and practicing their sword skills with blades forged by Umi's father. The two had kept it to themselves, wanting to surprise Kotori the moment they decided to enrol. It was during this time that Honoka had begun questioning the feelings she had towards her two friends. She loved them both, more than anything in the world. Honoka went on to explain that at the time, she didn't understand the kind of love she had been feeling. Was it all strictly platonic? Or was there more to it? When her father brought up the idea of falling in love and getting married to someone, Honoka was never able to picture one person. She had always imagined spending the rest of her life content and happy with Umi and Kotori, with or without marriage.

She didn't know how to tell the two of them this though. Honoka thought it was something only she had been feeling, and that it may have been wrong to feel that way about more than one person. Every story she read always spoke of love between two people, or love triangles where someone always ended up being broken hearted. She began slacking off on her training, and as a result she had almost failed the enrolment test. If it wasn't for Kotori's special request, Honoka may have never made it into the castle guards.

After that moment, Honoka began to suppress her feelings. She accepted that she loved them, and she would always love them, even if they fell in love with someone else. They were her best friends, her most loyal comrades and the ones she would happily die in battle for. If her feelings were going to get in the way, she'd rather pretend that they didn't exist at all.

Things had gotten rough after that. Umi and Honoka began getting into fights, Honoka would never admit if something was wrong and Umi began to worry to the point of scolding Honoka on almost everything she did. The stress they were feeling began wearing away at Kotori as well, and she began locking herself in the library and avoiding her two friends. It had escalated to the point where Umi had slapped Honoka in her frustration. The moment her hand had made contact with her, she had instantly regretted her choice. But Umi's pride was strong, and she didn't say a word afterward. Honoka had only been able to touch the part she smacked. She had stayed strong, up until they heard a muffled cry and noticed Kotori had seen the whole thing.

Seeing how hurt they had made their princess, Umi and Honoka had pushed away any arguments they were having, going over to her and doing their best to comfort her. Kotori had sobbed, saying she couldn't understand why the fights were happening, why everything was so tense. Castle life with the two of them was supposed to be the greatest thing in the world, not the worst. Honoka wasn't able to look at the both of them as Umi spoke, trying to explain herself.

Umi had known Honoka her entire life. Honoka was her best friend and only friend until they met Kotori, and Honoka had been there for everything that Umi had accomplished. Umi explained that she too, had witnessed almost everything important in Honoka's life, and that she had been happy to be there for everything. But Honoka's strange behaviour never went unnoticed, and Umi just couldn't ignore it. Umi was never too good with confrontations about feelings, both Kotori and Honoka knew this well. As a result, many fights began, and Umi had never meant to hit Honoka, she would never do such a harsh thing. Honoka knew this, but it was only then did Honoka realize just how bad suppressing her feelings was.

After getting her feelings together, Honoka confessed everything to the two of them. She confessed how much she loved them, how scared she was that they wouldn't understand her feelings, how that fear had pushed her into a spot where the only thing she felt was right was to pretend that the feelings never existed. She admitted that she knew what she was doing was wrong, but she wasn't sure that confessing such a thing would be appropriate. She had cried really hard after confessing all of that to them, and throughout her tears Kotori had pulled her close and held her tight, never once letting go.

It was through that action that Honoka knew Kotori understood. Kotori understood and thought it was okay, and that in itself made Honoka feel relieved beyond belief. Umi on the other hand, didn't quite grasp just what Honoka meant.

"Honoka," she had started, getting her attention. "I thought it was obvious that I loved both you and Kotori very much. Have I not been expressing it properly?" Honoka had let out a small laugh through her tears, and Kotori began to explain for Honoka.

"Umi-chan, Honoka isn't saying she loves us. She's saying she's in love with us."

"Yes, that's what she said, but aren't we all in love with each other?" Umi had paused, looking to the floor. "Or have I been understanding it wrong this whole time?"

Honoka didn't know whether she was crying because of the emotions she felt or because of how hard Umi had made her laugh. Seeing Honoka laughing had brought joy to both Kotori and Umi, and both of them had smiled watching her. When Honoka's laughing died down, Kotori began speaking again.

"Honoka-chan, I feel the same way." Honoka had stared wide eyed at her friend, her heart beating fast as she watched her look down with a small blush on her cheeks.

"I love you too! I've always loved you! And I also love Umi that way too!" She had exclaimed, bringing her hands to her rosy cheeks. "But just like you, I didn't know what to think either." She smiles a bit at the two of them.

"But I decided I didn't care, I thought that I'd be happy just having our friendship with each other. I was so happy when you both became knights, and getting to see you every day has made me the happiest princess alive! But then everything went wrong and I was afraid that it was over me and- Ah.. well, I'm just really relieved it isn't that and it's just because you love us, Honoka-chan." Kotori had giggled lightly, playing with a strand of her long hair.

It was then that it clicked with Umi, and she blushed majorly.

"I-I have been misunderstanding it a bit." she whispered. It reached both Honoka and Kotori's ears, and they glanced over to the other girl. She rubbed her forearm, glancing shyly at the two of them.

"You know, I always did believe we were all in love. The three of us have always had something. I thought we were okay this way, I thought this way expressed our love for each other best. B-but I see now just what you mean, Honoka, Kotori." She blushed a bit more, and the trio sat in a comfortable silence afterwards.

Honoka sips her water again, placing her cup down and smiling at the blonde and the violet haired girl who listened intently. Nozomi's eyes had softened and her smile was warm and loving, and Eli too had a small fond smile. Honoka grinned a bit, speaking again.

"After that, we talked it over again. Kotori-chan, Umi-chan and I decided that we don't need any sort of label. We don't need to explain to anyone what we might or might not be. We all love each other, and its in both the friend way and the romantic way.

"We've been living happily ever since, and whenever theres a problem we always make sure to talk to each other. We share small kisses, we all hold hands, and we do everything any other couple might. The three of us genuinely love each other, and I'm lucky I get to share my love with two of the greatest people in my life. Even if others might not understand it, we do. That's all that matters." Honoka concludes, staring towards the door as Kotori and Umi entered the room. She smiled lovingly in their direction, and Eli and Nozomi shared a small glance with each other, smiling lightly.

"You're right, Honoka-chan." Nozomi says, looking away from Eli. "As long as you're all happy, that's all that matters." Honoka gives Nozomi a wide grin, and she stands up.

"I'll be right back! I'm gunna go say good morning to them." She says excitedly. Honoka bounces up from her seat, and Eli and Nozomi watch her excitedly running over to them, enveloping the two girls in a giant hug. Umi's voice could be heard scolding her lightly before Honoka and Kotori began laughing.

"I never knew Umi felt that way about the Princess or Honoka." Eli says quietly. Nozomi had begun piling food onto her plate, humming a bit.

"I don't think it's something Umi-chan would tell just anyone." She comments, meeting Eli's gaze. "Not even you, Elichi."

Eli takes that into consideration, before gathering food for her own plate as well.

"You're probably right, Nozomi." She concludes. Nozomi smiles a bit, waving towards the rest of the group who had began entering the dining hall.

"Perhaps I am~."


	8. Let the Festival Begin!

**AN** : Greetings everyone! I bring a rather delayed but quite long update. Here is the kick start to the climax of the story~ Special shout out to Pasdechat on tumblr because today is her birthday~ Happy birthday friend! If the beginning paragraph doesn't make too much sense, please refer to the latest chapters in the Otonokizaka side stories~

Thank you for any and all feedback, I hope you enjoy this update!

* * *

The beginning of June went by fast, Maki's arm had healed up nicely from the attack on the castle and everyone participating in the festival's events worked training for the tournament into their daily schedules. Maki, Honoka and Nico both had been practicing hard using every spare moment they found to train on their own or with one another, while Umi made time to train between her duties. Rin, Eli and Nozomi weren't participating, and so stuck with their daily duties and would check in on the girls who were practicing between work and meals.

The group had now finished breakfast and were idly chatting amongst one another as they discussed their plans for the day. Eli decided it was a perfect time to let everyone know that plans were changing.

"Alright everyone! Listen up!" She calls out to the table, standing from her stool and gathering her squads attention. "The Summer Solstice festival doesn't officially begin until two days from now, however the Queens guests will be arriving tomorrow so we want to be fully set up. It looks like the staff is a bit behind on that, so to help speed things up I've offered our assistance to them. We'll go wherever we are needed for the day and do our best to help if we can. Aside from Hanayo, and either Umi or Honoka, who will stick to their duties with the princess." Eli continued, looking to everyone seated around the table.

"Honoka, I think you should stay with the Princess. I'll be a lot faster with these tasks than you might be." Umi says, and Honoka pouts.

"Hey! I can be fast!" She counters, and Kotori smiles.

"It's okay Honoka-chan, you can help out with the things I need to oversee." Honoka's pout immediately disappears, and she beams towards her princess.

"Anyway," Eli continues, unravelling a scroll she had. "There really isn't much we need to help out with, the staff made it clear they would have everything done if we took care of these two things: Setting up the archery targets and preparing the field for that event, and setting up the banners along the main path of town." Eli quickly rolls her scroll up.

"From here we'll split up into two groups, my group will come with me into the village to set up the banners and other decorations, and the other group will set up the archery field. Since Umi will be assisting with the set up, I see it fit she leads the group that will set all the targets up."

"That's not a problem with me." Umi says. "Have you decided who will go with each team?"

"Actually, Nozomi did." Eli glances to Nozomi, who only grins at the group of girls. "She suggested that Maki and Nico should come with me to set up the decorations, while she and Rin should go with you to the field. I thought it was a good idea since Nico works with Maki and Rin works with you, and by the time we're all finished Nozomi will find me and relay how the set up for your group went."

"Setting up decorations? That's easy. With my help, we'll be done in no time." Nico says with a shrug and a smirk, and Maki stares at her.

"That or Eli and I will get you to hold the ladder while we climb high and hang the banners." Nico's smirked is wiped off of her face and she eyes Maki disapprovingly. Nozomi laughs loudly, not bothering to hide her amusement by Maki's comment. Before Nico can comment, Eli interrupts.

"Not now you two, leave your quarrels for when we're all done our work. The sooner we get the banners set up, the sooner you two can come back and get to your training." At the mention of the training, Nico quickly closed her mouth and stood.

"Well in that case, I'm ready to go then Captain!" She says. Maki stands shortly afterward, and soon the rest of the table follows suit.

They all began making their way to the exit, Rin talking animatedly with Hanayo while Kotori, Honoka and Umi chatted with one another. The rest of the girls stayed silent, until it was time for them to part from each other. Nozomi turned to Eli and gave her a small grin.

"Don't work too hard, Elichi." She says, and Eli smiles and nods.

"I'll do my best. Don't gang up on Umi with Rin too much now, alright? Leave the playing for when you're done your jobs."

"Only for you, Elichi." She laughs, then looks to her shorter friend. "You too, Nicocchi. Be careful and don't drop Maki-chan or Elichi while they're up on the ladder."

"Hey! If anything, I'll be the one climbing the ladder! I'm the smallest!" Nico retorts, and Nozomi laughs again.

"Ah! You said it, not me~!"

"Yeah yeah, We have to go now." Nico grumbles, huffing slightly. "And uh, you work hard too." she adds quieter, causing Nozomi to smile.

"Of course. You do the same, Maki-chan!" She calls to the red head, who only gives a nod in return. With that being said, Nozomi waves a bit and heads off to follow Rin and Umi, who had been waiting for her just down the hallway.

The trio watches as she meets up with the other two and rounds the corner. Eli's smile is still on her lips and Nico and Maki eye her carefully.

"Are you ready to go, Captain?" Maki asks, bringing Eli out of her small trance.

"Oh, yeah. Lets go girls." Eli answers, turning and heading towards the castle entrance. Nico and Maki share a small glance before following her down the hallway and towards the exit.

The change in Eli's behaviour was no secret to the castle. She was still quite stern and took her jobs very seriously, but she also smiled quite a lot more, and took part in conversations with the castle guard a lot more easily now. She greeted everyone with a smile rather than a nod of acknowledgement, and she would always voice a good morning to anyone who said it to her as well. Rin and Honoka were no longer afraid to make small jokes with her, and even Hanayo was able to communicate more easily with Eli in idle conversations as well. It was hard to believe that just about two months of having Nozomi by her side made this much of an impact on her.

Maki too, had faced a lot of changes being partnered with Nico. The most noticeable were the amount of mini arguments they got into over trivial things. Nico was always quick to brag about something, and Maki was always finding ways to counter that bragging from things she had witnessed Nico doing. Nico really did pride herself in her skills, but Maki could list many times where she had said really stupid things or hadn't been prepared for a new task.

But Maki didn't dislike it. In fact, she enjoyed it. The friendship she had with Rin and Hanayo was different from what she had with Nico. With them it was sweet and fun, Rin would always tease and Hanayo was always reeling her in when she went too far. Maki wasn't shy about teasing them back, and it would never fail to catch Rin by surprise when she did. But with Nico, teasing with her would soon escalate. Nico would always start with a simple remark, something off hand like how Maki would sheath her sword, lift it a bit and then firmly sheath it again. It was a habit of hers that she had no idea when it began, but it stuck with her throughout her training days and still to this day was something she did as a confirmation her sword was firmly in place.

Every time Nico would say something teasingly, it set something ablaze inside Maki. She knew it was teasing, she knew comments Nico made were never meant for anything more than that, but she always countered it with things she noticed Nico would do. Things Nico sometimes thought nobody had noticed. Maki would bring up how Nico had to get Kotori to hem her new gloves a bit because her hands were too small, and how Nico used to run and jump to get herself on top of her horse properly, but stopped after accidentally leaping over him entirely. Whenever Maki retorted with a fact like that, the little feuds would start. It would always end with the two of them huffing and looking away from one another, but eventually they would fall back into their regular work routine, silent apologies voiced to one another.

Maki knew it was weird she couldn't tease with Nico. She had realized it long ago. Nico never made any comments about it, but Maki could tell it bothered her slightly. She felt guilty, but she couldn't really tell why it bothered her more than teasing with Rin did. When it came to Nico, Maki felt so many different things that she hadn't with her other friends. Maki knew she got embarrassed more around her, and whenever she knew Nico was watching she always felt the need to impress her. To show her she really is everything that she worked hard to be. Part of her felt like she needed to prove herself to Nico, despite Nico working under her and not particularly caring how skilled she was.

At the end of the day, her and Nico truly were close friends. They spoke more casually with each other more than anyone else in the squad, they hung around each other more (even if it was for work purposes most of the time.) They saw each other first every morning, and they always had something to talk about. If Maki was more honest with herself, she would probably admit that Nico was the one person who knew more about her than anyone inside the castle.

Maki began to wonder just what that meant with her and Nico. Would that make them best friends? Best friends knew everything about each other. Maki knew almost everything about Nico, she was sure of it. Nico had told her things she hadn't told anyone else, and Maki too had shared her deepest secrets with Nico. Nico was never shy about listening to the purple eyed girls stories when they would talk, and she's soon brought back to the morning when Nico helped bandage her wound. The way her heartbeat escalated when at the thought of Nico fighting to protect her, the way Nico's eyes were soft and the gentle touches of her hands as they wrapped the bandage firmly around her arm. The lingering thoughts she had of her and Nico traveling the Otonokizaka country together. Maki could feel her face flush slightly at her new thoughts. This couldn't be how best friends thought about one another. She'd have to discuss this with Hanayo later on and see what she thought.

They finally exited the castle, a small cart with all the supplies and a couple horses ready for them at the gates. Maki pushed her thoughts aside and brought work to mind as Eli instructed Nico and Maki to hop into the cart while she drove it. The two agreed, climbing into the back with the supplies and sitting on opposite sides from one another. Eli climbed onto the seat at the head of the cart, grabbing the reins and calling out to Mika, who was waiting for Eli's signal. Mika gave them the thumbs up and the sounds of the gate opening soon echoed throughout the front courtyard. The cart began moving with a small jolt, Maki and Nico falling forward and doing their best to stabilize themselves by holding onto the edges of the cart. The two looked at each other, Nico offering an awkward grin and Maki letting out a small laugh as Eli mumbled an apology to the two of them.

The three of them travel in silence to the beginning of the main street of the village, passing by many villagers who had been setting up their shops and stalls for the preparation of the festival as well. Many young kids watched in awe as the three knights with the noble aura passed by them. A few shouted greetings to them, which Nico had responded to all of them with a small wave of her hand or a shout of "Good morning!" Maki and Eli both chose to stay quiet, wanting to focus more on getting the job done than get distracted with the village children.

They made their first stop, and Nico and Maki climbed out of the cart, bringing out the first banner with them. Along the main street were various different pillars that held the Otonokizaka kingdom flags. For the duration of the festival, those flags would be taken down and replaced with colourful banners that would decorate the streets and bring a more lively atmosphere to the road. Many different merchants and shop owners did their own special things throughout the events, and in the village center a dance square was always set up and the villagers would play music and dance with one another. The decorations there were already taken care of, many of the villagers insisting they didn't mind setting up the square, which left the castle staff with just the main road that Eli, Maki and Nico were setting up now.

"Alright, Maki, you grab the ladder. Nico, you'll be going up and taking the flag down while I get the banner ready for you to hang up there."

"Yes Captain." they chorused, Maki heading to the cart and grabbing the ladder. Carefully, she set the wooden structure against the long pole, making sure it was steady and then looking to Nico.

"Its ready for you Nico-chan." Nico nodded, walking over to the ladder and placing her foot on the first step. She let out a shaky nervous breath before she began climbing. Once Nico was high enough, Maki placed herself right at the foot of the ladder and began holding it steady as Nico climbed higher toward the first flag.

Maki stared up at her watching her stop right near the top. Nico pressed her weight against the ladder as she began fiddling with the flag that stuck to the pole, grumbling when it wouldn't come down as smoothly as she'd like. Maki furrowed her brows, a bit, only able to see the bottom of Nico's boots and her pants. She wasn't able to tell how well Nico had been fairing in bringing down the flag, and so she simply kept her gaze on what she could see to make sure that Nico didn't slip while on the ladder. Staring at Nico's boots didn't last long, and Maki's gaze crept up to her legs. A sudden shyness overcame the red haired girl and she quickly glanced away, realizing just how awkward it would have been if Nico had caught her staring up at her from where she stood. Maki keeps her gaze locked on the space in front of her rather than Nico as she mentally scolded herself for not thinking about where she was looking.

'What is with me today...' Maki thought to herself, blushing as she stared off at nothing in particular.

"Okay Captain, I'm throwing the flag down." Nico calls out, successfully unhooking the flag from the post.

Eli gives her the go ahead, and Nico drops the flag down into her arms. The sounds of the flag fluttering down pull Maki from her trance and she looks over to Eli, who began folding it up and placing it in the cart.

"Alright Nico, come down and get this side of the banner." Eli calls and Maki soon moves out of the way for Nico, who began to step down the ladder. Maki watched as Nico grabbed the banner and quickly climbed back up, getting it tied securely and in place on the tall pole.

The rest of the morning was spent repeating the same actions. Eli would help guide the banners across the road and make sure that any passing villager didn't get mixed up in their work. Maki would hold the ladder for Nico while she would climb up and hang each decoration with ease. Nico was very quick about it too, and learnt the best way to tie each banner fast. Before long, the trio was down to their last banner and would soon be able to make their way back to the castle.

A small group of curious children had begun watching the three knights in their work, and Eli saw no harm in letting them watch as long as they didn't try to distract them. Maki had ignored their stares, deciding not to pay them any mind. Nico would always make sure to give a small grin their way whenever they caught her eye, and after finally tying the last banner, she finally spoke to them.

"You guys have been watching us for a while. Were you that interested in decorations being set up?" She quirks her eyebrow to one of the boys, who looked at his group of friends before slowly shaking his head. Nico smirked a bit triumphantly.

"Thought so. Little boys and girls don't care much about setting up banners." She said nonchalantly. Eli and Maki began packing the cart up, allowing Nico to continue talking with the children.

"What did you really wanna do?" Nico asks. "Don't be shy, we're all done so you can tell the truth."

Another child spoke up, her hair tied in a small ponytail on the top of her head, much like Eli's.

"We wanted to see the knights of the castle up close!" She says, and Nico grins a bit.

"Looks like it's your lucky day then." She says, and the little girl nods with a smile. "Are your parents going to let you watch the events at the castle?"

"YEAH!" A little boy shouts excitedly, before quickly covering his mouth as the other two kids glare in his direction.

"W-what he means is that yes, our parents said we could watch the events this year with them." The first boy spoke, looking between Nico, Eli and Maki. "A-are you three going to be in the events?" He added shyly, unable to look them directly in the face.

"I won't be." Eli says, catching their attention. "As the Captain, I'll just be overseeing the events this time around. But these two will be participating in a couple of them." The children's eyes went wide with excitement, and the younger boy of the group stepped forward a bit, his excited voice reaching their ears again.

"Which events?!"

Maki chose to continue not speaking, feeling a bit shy as she was put on the spot. Nico decided to speak for the both of them.

"Nishikino-san there will be participating in the sword fighting event on the second day, while I will be taking the number one prize in the jousting event on the final day." She announced, and the trio of kids smiled brightly

"Woah, the sword fight?!" The first boy said, looking to Maki in awe. "I hope you win it! The sword fight is my favourite event!"

"Mine too!" The girl adds, and both of them grin brightly at Maki. Maki reaches up and twists some of her hair, looking to the ground.

"Thanks." She says quietly.

"W-well be sure to be at the joust too, kids! I promise you'll enjoy seeing me knock people off their horses!"

After making sure the kids promised they'd watch the joust too, Eli interrupted and told the children that it was time for them to head back to the castle. They said good bye to the trio with reluctance, before running back down the street and to their homes. With that done, they began to double check that everything was packed properly into the cart.

"I didn't know you signed up for the joust, Nico." Eli says, moving through the tools around to be sure that all of them were present.

"Of course! I have an amazing horse, it'd be a crime not to participate in the joust with him!" Nico says with a grin.

"I would have expected you to participate in the sword fights." Eli admits, moving from the tools to the flags that now rested in the cart "Remembering your spar with Maki, you'd definitely be capable of winning. Unless it came down to you two sparring again, then it'd be interesting to see who wins." an amused smile sits on her features as she imagines Maki versus Nico round two.

"O-Of course I would be! I'm an amazing sword fighter. But since Akiba is attending, knowing them they'll probably have Hitomi, and I know when to back down from a fight I won't win."

"Hitomi?" Maki says questioningly, quirking an eyebrow at Nico as she placed the last flag they had gotten on top of the pile Eli finished sorting through.

"Hitomi was the second in command of the castle guard when I was apart of the Akiba forces. She's a tough customer and not someone that anybody in the guard wanted to mess with." the raven haired girl explains as she watched Eli and Maki.

"You've done your fair share of research on them." Eli muses, glancing towards Nico.

"Yeah, well, in another life I wanted nothing more than to be apart of her squadron." She says offhandedly, waving one of her hands before looking over to Maki, who had moved to collect the ladder they had been using. She smiles a bit to herself, Eli watching her as her eyes soften in Maki's direction. "I like it a lot better here though." She adds, her smile still on her face. She then goes over to Maki, deciding to help her with the ladder.

Eli watches them, her mind wandering to how well they had gotten along throughout the work. They hadn't argued at all, and both of them worked better than she had expected. Nozomi had made a joke that it would have been Eli trying to hang the banners while Nico and Maki argued about which banner went where, but she'd be pleased to admit to Nozomi later on that no fighting of that sort happened at Once Eli confirmed they finally had everything, Maki and Nico climbed back into it and Eli encouraged the horses pulling it to move forward and head back in the direction of the castle. The trip back was quiet, the three of them not having much to say and looking forward to spending the day getting back to their regular duties. The castle gate comes into view quickly, and from the top a shout can be heard.  
"The Captain has returned! Open the gate!" Mika's voice rings out through the area and with a few loud clanks, the gate begins to open up once again.

"Thank you Mika!" Eli calls up to her as she slows the horses down into a slower walk. They enter the courtyard and Eli sighs contently. Even if they were only gone for around an hour and a half, it still felt nice to return home.

At the front of the castle, Honoka and Hanayo were near a much larger cart, helping a few staff members with what looked like a large delivery of food. Since Otonokizaka would be playing host for the Akiba kingdom, they would need quite a bit more food than what they usually had delivered. Eli stopped the cart not too far away, climbing down from her seat and watching as a few staff members made their way over to Eli. Nico and Maki climbed out of the cart and walked over to Eli as they waited for further instructions from her. The trio were thanked happily by a few staff members, who the quickly gathered up everything from the cart to store away safely in their homes inside the castle.

"Ah! The Captain's back!" Honoka's voice is loud and catches their attention and she grins towards them, waving a bit. "Welcome back everyone!"

"Thank you, Honoka." Eli says with a smile, walking over to where her and Hanayo stood. "What are you two doing?"

"The princess instructed us to over see the food shipment!" Honoka replies, looking over to Hanayo who was counting the bags of rice on the cart. "Hanayo-chan is almost done double counting, then we'll be taking it all to the kitchen!"

"That's a lot of stuff you'll be taking." Maki says, glancing inside the cart. "Do you need any help?"

At that question, Hanayo faced the three of them, giving them all a small smile.

"Welcome back!" she greets them, before looking to only Maki. "H-help would be lovely. The more help we have the faster we can get all of these goods to the kitchen staff."

"We'll happily help out then." Eli says immediately.

"Thank you, Captain!" Hanayo says shyly. "Honoka-chan, everything is here and counted for so we can begin taking it off the cart."

Hanayo and Honoka began lifting things off of the cart and handing it to staff members who had been waiting to help as well. Nico and Maki work together to lift a crate full of bags of rice, Nico complaining about it's weight and Maki telling her not to bother taking this if she was going to complain. Eli watched as the two of them walked off, their voices becoming distant as they used all their strength to carry the crate. Honoka then pushed a crate to the edge of the cart, catching Eli's attention.

"This ones a bit heavy Captain, I can help you take it to the kitchen if you need me to." Honoka says, gesturing to a crate full of many bottles of wine. Eli turned towards it, lifting it up and testing the weight herself. It was a bit hefty, but she was sure she could manage.

"It's fine Honoka, this isn't too heavy." Eli assures, turning form Honoka and making her way to the castle.

"Well, if you're sure then Captain." Honoka says in an unconvinced voice, before helping Hanayo hoist a giant sac of flour off of the cart and to a couple staff members who waited patiently.

In only a few paces, Eli began to fill with regret. The crate of wine was fine to lift, but walking with it began to become a difficult task. If she wasn't so stubborn, she would have turned around and shouted to Honoka that she maybe did need some assistance. But she was very stubborn, and she knew she could do it. It may require her pausing to gather her strength, but she would make it to the kitchen with the wine eventually. Eli closes her eyes and lets out a breath, adjusting her hold on the crate to get a better grip.

The weight is suddenly much lighter than it had been before, and in a bit of surprise Eli opens her eyes and looks around. To her left was Nozomi, who had a knowing smile as she lifted the crate up ever so slightly to take some of the weight off of her stubborn captain. Eli returns her smile with one of her own.

"You look like you could use a bit of help, Elichi." Nozomi comments, adjusting the crate so she held one of the handles. Eli quickly took the other handle into her hand, the crate being carried evenly between the two of them.

"Thank you Nozomi." Eli replies as the two of them walk together.

"How was setting up the banners?" Nozomi asks, creating conversation while they headed towards their destination.

"Good. Everything went well and we had a small audience of children watching us." the blonde replies with an amused smile. "As well as no bickering between Maki and Nico."

"That's a bit surprising." Nozomi laughs "But I'm glad it went well."

"I am too." Eli replies, fixing her grip on the crate. "How was setting up the targets? Did it go alright?" She asks politely, knowing the answer must be yes if Nozomi was there assisting Eli.

"It went very well." The purple haired girl answers, her smile turning into a cheeky grin. "Rin-chan and I may have played a bit too much though."

"Didn't I mention not to gang up on Umi?" Eli quirks her eyebrow at Nozomi, who continues to grin.

"We never ganged up on Umi-chan~ We simply played between setting up targets. I think what got Umi most was that we had finished quickly while still being able to fool around. She was impressed, but she still scolded us."

Eli continued to listen to Nozomi's stories from setting up the archery targets, reaching the kitchen and dropping off the wine bottles during that time. They began to make their way back to the cart, walking side by side with their hands occasionally grazing each others.

Over the course of the month the two had learnt many things about each other. Eli began to truly appreciate Nozomi's fortunes, always listening to Nozomi's predictions and what the cards would have to say about events Nozomi did readings on. Nozomi began lighting the fires every other night for her and Eli in their room, leaving Eli to relax a bit more. These little things helped Eli gradually open up more to everyone, and she continued to feel new things she hadn't ever imagined. In turn, Nozomi had learnt not only how to defend herself, but what it felt like to work alongside your best friend. When her sword arrived, the first thing the two of them had done was test it out by having a small spar with Nozomi's new blade. Nozomi was still quite inexperienced, but with enough training she'd be just fine. It was a memory Nozomi planned to cherish, even if it was something as simple as fighting with her own sword for the first time.

Eli had begun to think about life before Nozomi. It was absurd to think that only a few months ago, she had very little friends and her life was nothing but eat, sleep, work and training. Now, it was so much more. All it took was Nozomi joining her during her routine to add laughter and fun, to add more relaxation and to add more bonds with her comrades. Eli had a hard time imagining how she had even survived without the close friendships she now had with everyone. If it weren't for Nozomi, it was unlikely Eli would have even tried to get closer to others. It was such a big change for the blonde, and she really couldn't imagine her life without Nozomi any longer.

The duo reach the outdoors again, noticing the cart was just about empty. Hanayo handed the last two items to a few staff members, before wiping some sweat from her brow and smiling happily.

"Oh? Is everything all unpacked already?" Eli asks as they approach the cart, and Hanayo nods.

"It is! Thank you for your help Captain." She smile warmly at her, then quickly thanks Nozomi for her contribution as well. Nozomi returns her smile with one of her own.

"If Nozomi-chan is here, does that mean Umi-chan is all finished as well?" Honoka asks, and Nozomi nods.

"Umi-chan said she would be off to help the princess, and she wanted me to tell you your free to train if you'd like." Nozomi relays Umi's message, and Honoka grins brightly.

"Great! Since we're all done here, I'll be heading off first then!" She announces, giving a quick good bye wave to the trio and heading towards the training grounds.

Honoka had entered the sword fighting event as well, being the only other knight among Eli's squad that entered that particular event. Her and Maki were the only two participating in those battles, and Eli thought it would be quite amusing if the both of them won all of their matches and ended up facing of against one another. Honoka had been training very hard since the announcement of the festival, so she would be quite the opponent for Maki and every other knight partaking in the event.

"Have Nico and Maki left for training as well?" Eli asks Hanayo, and the brown haired girl nods.

"I believe they planned to after visiting the stables. Nico-chan wanted to visit Kuro before hand." She says with a smile. Eli hums a bit, before looking to Nozomi.

"It'll be up to us to find the head of the festival committee and let them know we've finished everything as requested."

"Let's not keep Kurosaki-san waiting then." the purple haired girl says. They say farewell to Hanayo and begin walking back into the castle, their hands lightly brushing against one another as a comfortable silence falls between them.

* * *

The visit with Kuro had been a short one, Nico giving him a small treat and petting his large face. The horse wasn't too eager about practicing in that moment, so Nico decided to offer her assistance to Maki by sparring with her so she got her practice for the day with a person and not a dummy. The two of them were walking side by side to the training grounds when Nico asks a question.

"This is your first tournament, right Maki-chan?"

Maki idly plays with her sword handle, before nodding lightly.

"Yeah, it is. I've only ever watched tournaments up until this year." She confesses. "It's only the sword fighting event, but I'm confidant enough where I think I'll win. If I don't, I think I'll at least place in second."

They reach the training grounds, and Nico and Maki take off their own blades and place them safely against the wall nearest the door of the hut that held the practice weapons. They both begin looking through which weapon they'd like to use, and Nico voices her reply.

"You should have more confidence in your other skills too, Maki-chan. You'd be an incredible jouster since you're an impeccable horse rider." Maki can feel her face heat up at the compliment as she picks up her sword of choice.

"You think so?" She asks a bit shyly. Her heart was beginning to race and her mind began clouding with reasons on why it was doing this now of all times.

"I wouldn't have said it if I didn't." Nico answers, picking up her sword of choice and grinning to herself as she test swings it.

Maki begins to test hers out as well, her mind focusing on getting her heart beat to slow down and to focus on the spar she was about to have with her partner. After a few test swings, she exited the hut and Nico followed, also content with the sword she had chosen. They step out to the make shift sparring ring and face each other, getting into fighting stances. When Nico nods she's ready, Maki moves to strike and the two begin their friendly spar.

As swords clash, Maki attacking and Nico defending, the twin tailed girl begins to talk through their movements.

"Maybe one day I'll teach you how to joust." She says, pondering it with a smile as she blocks a strike from Maki.

"Learning to joust from you?" Maki says, drawing back and beginning to block hits from Nico. "Sounds like that'd be interesting." She gives a small smirk when she dodges Nico's strike, causing her to stumble forward a bit and giving her the offensive again.

Their spar continues, both quitting the conversation and focusing on each others movements. Back and forth the girls hit and block, twisting away from one another to try and both fighting for the upper hand in the fight. Minutes had turned into an hour as the both of them continue sparring, their movements syncing perfectly and their strikes never losing power. Their footsteps danced along the ground as neither one of them let up, swords colliding loudly with each strike.

The two were finally completely and utterly exhausted by the time an hour and a half went by, and the duo decided to call it a day for Maki's training. Nico was the first to walk to the little hut, putting the sword she had been using back where she found it and heading to the wall where her work blade leant against. Maki followed, placing the blade down and leaning over to grab her sword as well. Both of their arms crossed paths and Nico's hand grazed Maki's, causing the red head to pull away from the sudden contact. She mumbles a quick apology to Nico, reaching again for her sword and quickly attaching it to her belt.

"What are you apologizing for?" Nico asks, quirking her eyebrow. Maki shakes her head.

"Nothing. No reason. I just like, got in your way when I went to grab my own sword so.. yeah." She admits awkwardly, reaching up to play with a bit of her hair and looking away embarrassed. Nico can feel a slight blush tinting her cheeks the more she watched her partner.

"Geeze," she begins, rubbing the back of her neck with her hand. "You don't need to get flustered over something like that."

Maki glances over, nodding a bit.

"Right, sorry." She says, offering Nico a tiny sincere smile. Nico's eyes widen and she blushes a bit from the blindingly adorable smile.

"Cute..." Nico blurts out rather loudly before covering her mouth, unable to believe she had just said it out loud. Maki's eyes widen as she stares at Nico, who holds a hand out quickly.

"W-wait! I didn't actually say that! F-forget what you heard! It was in your imagination!" Nico shouts, causing the red haired girl next to her to turn a darker shade of red.

"H-how do you expect me to forget something you just said, especially when you just randomly said it out of nowhere!" She shouts back, her hand falling to her side as she looks away from the twin tailed girl.

There's an awkward silence between the two of them, both embarrassed by their outbursts.

Maki's the first to move, heading right for the exit. As she's leaving, she can hear Nico mumble quietly under her breath.

"Maybe a better word for it would be beautiful." Maki's breath hitches and she can feel her heart beating in her ears. She turns quickly to Nico, who was staring away from her.

"I.. I'm gunna go find Rin and Hanayo! See if they need any help with anything! You can- you can spend the rest of the day as you like, maybe training or- or something." Is how she replies in a rushed sentence, before she dashes off, leaving Nico to awkwardly watch as she fled the training area.

Maki's heartbeat hadn't slowed down the moment she entered the castle again, and she's brought back to all her early morning thoughts she had stored away. Consulting Hanayo about her unsure feelings were definitely top priority now, even if she did have a better idea of just how she felt. This wasn't friendship. Well, it was, but it wasn't. Friends could find smiles pretty and comment on it. But did friends blush and accidentally blurt out the other was cute? Rin never blushed when she called Maki cute. Hanayo did, but Hanayo wasn't nervous about calling Rin or Maki cute. She actually said it very often, especially to Rin. She raise a hand to her chest and clutches the part of her tunic that rested above where her heart was.

She definitely liked Nico a lot more than a friend. Nico was adorable, Nico was silly, but Nico was also very smart and agile. Nico took care of Maki regardless of how much she protested, and she always did her job to the best of her ability. Nico complimented her well and in turn Maki complimented her. They grew closer so easily and Maki should have realized the moment she became comfortable around Nico that things were much different than she thought.

Her heart sinks when she remembers her meetings with Eli and Umi and the fact that they still suspected Nico and Nozomi had ulterior motives at the castle. Nothing new about the situation had come up since their last meeting, but because the festival was so close Maki knew that the two of them would be watching the Akiba duo carefully. The kingdoms safety was top priority and for the first time in her life Maki felt she was unable to decide whether she would stay loyal to Otonokizaka, or defend the girl that made her heart skip a beat. Maki quickly shook her head to clear herself of the thoughts, and made her way towards the kitchen where she knew Hanayo might be.

* * *

By the time dinner rolled around, Maki was still lingering on her thoughts. She had found Hanayo exactly where she thought she'd be. She was helping the cooks out with the menu of dishes that were to be cooked throughout the duration of the festival. Maki wasn't able to offer much help, so instead she waited for Hanayo to finish talking with the head chef Nagayama. Once Hanayo was finished, the two of them went for a walk and Maki had confessed her thoughts on her feelings with Nico to her brown haired friend. Hanayo listened intently, only speaking once Maki was finished.

"You think you might like Nico-chan as more than a friend then?" She asks, observing Maki with a curious gaze. Maki only nods and Hanayo smiles, continuing to speak "Well, that's okay, isn't it? You're both very close so feelings like that can happen."

"It's not okay!" Maki objects, her face flushing a bit. "It's not okay because every time she says something weird, I can feel myself trying not to blush or trying not to do anything stupid like- like holding her hand or something. I get awkward when I remember how much I like her."

Hanayo giggles a bit, bringing a hand up to her mouth. Maki sighs and looks away from her unable to hide her embarrassment. Now that she had voiced her feelings to someone out loud, she couldn't stop feeling sheepish about it all.

"Maki-chan, that's okay." her friend consoles, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder and smiling at her. "Do you plan to tell Nico-chan?" Maki froze in place and shook her head immediately.

"Not any time soon." the red haired girl sighs, her hand reaching up to twirl her hair in that nervous habit of hers, but quickly stopping when Maki realized she was about to do it for the millionth time that day. Hanayo smiles sympathetically.

"If you're nervous about how Nico will react, the only way you'll know how she feels is if you ask." The shy girl takes her hand from Maki's shoulder, before excusing herself to go see Kotori before heading to the dining hall.

Now Maki sat with Nozomi and Eli, the beginning dinner activity beginning as many staff members made their way into the dinning hall and sitting at their respective tables. The two of them had greeted her before continuing their previous conversation, leaving Maki to her thoughts. Asking Nico how she felt about her sounded a lot easier than it actually was, and Maki was struggling to find a way to even ask. Should she just be blunt and come right out with it? Or should she beat around the bush and hope Nico understood what she meant. She wanted to consult someone else about this, but the only person who came to mind that she would consider asking was the girl she had been wanting to avoid telling these things to. Maki sighed and determined it was hopeless and would all have to wait until after the festival. The festival would distract her enough where she wouldn't need to worry about this kind of thing.

"Aw, it looks like we're not the first people to arrive to dinner today!" a voice calls and Maki looks over to see Rin with a bright grin on her face, walking towards the table with Honoka and Nico. She greets them with a small wave as they take seats around the table, Nico sitting herself next to Maki and Rin and Honoka sitting across from them.

"Did you find Hanayo?" Nico asks, not bringing up the conversation that happened before Maki left her. Maki nods.

"Yeah, she was just talking with the chefs. She didn't really need any help with anything so I just wandered a bit before coming here."

"I see." Nico replies, ending their conversation.

Maki can feel the slight awkwardness between the two of them, and it takes everything in her not to twirl a bit of her hair and focus on something else. She idly listens to Honoka and Rin talking, Honoka voicing her excitement for the events that would be happening in the next few days.

"Hey, that reminds me!" Nico begins, looking to Maki suddenly. Maki sits up straight when Nico's eye meet hers and she waits for her to continue speaking.

"You know, we're probably both going to be all over the place the next few days. We might not see much of each other." She ignores the maids as they place bowls fully of a savoury smelling stew in front of the girls sitting at the table, her stubborn ruby eyed gaze never leaving Maki's. "But you better make sure you're there to cheer me on during my event."

All of Maki's worries wash away when Nico cracks a small smile, knowing her comment caught Maki by surprise. She slowly returns the smile with one of her own, nodding in agreement.

"Of course." Maki replies "And you better be there at all of my matches, cheering on your superior." Nico laughs lightly at the red haired girls comment.

"You got it boss."

The group begins to dig in to their dinner, Nozomi, Nico and Rin having a small conversation between bites with Honoka, who began telling a story about an experience with her and her little sister and a hot pot of soup. Maki listened in silence as she chewed on a bit of her dinner roll. She can soon feel Eli's presence closer than before and a quiet whisper reaches her ears.

"Tomorrow is when Akiba will arrive." she mumbles quietly. "It will be up to you, Umi and I to keep our eyes open for anything suspicious." Maki had been wondering when Eli might finally bring it up.

"Alright." She replies.

Umi soon enters the dining room, getting a loud greeting from Honoka and Rin. She lifts her hand in a small wave, greeting the both of them before turning to Maki and Eli.

"Captain, Maki, I'm sorry to interrupt but would it be alright if we had a quick talk?" She asks the two of them. Eli wordlessly stands, and Maki reluctantly follows suit.

"Don't keep Elichi too long, Umi-chan! Her and I are in charge of the evening rounds tonight~" Nozomi teases, and Umi gives her a small smile.

"Don't worry Nozomi, we won't be too long." Umi reassures, earning a grin from the purple haired girl. The trio head towards one of the exits, the rest of the table eyes following them as they retreated from the room. Nico turns to Nozomi, her gaze turning a bit serious.

"We should probably talk too, Nozomi." Nico says. Nozomi only smiles to her friend, standing up with her and following her out into the hallway and leaving Rin and Honoka by themselves.

On the other side, Maki, Umi and Eli had walked into a small siting room of the Queen's, Eli closing the door behind them and waiting to hear what Umi had called them to meet for. Maki stood a couple steps away from Umi as she began speaking.

"I know we'll all be busy these next few days, especially Maki and I who will be taking apart in the events." She begins. "It's going to make doing our jobs and observing the behaviour of Nozomi and Nico while Akiba is here very difficult. Which is why I think it'd be wise if we recruited Rin and Honoka in our Akiba monitoring plan."

"Wouldn't that mean we'd have to fill them in on all of our suspicions?" Maki asks, quirking her eyebrow. "Rin and Honoka are dedicated, but keeping our plan a secret is something I think Rin would have a hard time doing, especially when she has fun with both Nozomi and Nico between work."

"We won't have to if we only tell them it's just a safety precaution. Honoka won't question it because she trusts my judgement and knows if I have to explain it later, I shall. Rin on the other hand may be curious, but she'll do as she's told regardless on if she knows why she has to do it or not." Maki only hums at Umi's answer, and Eli gives a small nod of approval.

"If you believe this will help, I second it. If Rin gets too curious, you could always tell her that we just want to be sure Akiba doesn't do anything dirty to win events." Eli suggests, and Umi smiles at the idea.

"Good thinking, Captain."

"Being truthful, it will be nice to have their help." Eli continues, looking at her two right hand knights. "We don't know what might happen during this tournament, and I'm not entirely excited to find out. Nozomi intends to do one of her readings later on to see what the cards have to say about the festival events but I don't want any of us to hold our breaths waiting to see what they might say. The moment you notice shifty activity, report it to me as soon as possible."

"Yes Captain." Maki and Umi respond, concluding their small meeting.

The trio exit the sitting room and head back to the dining hall, walking to the table and taking their seats. Eli frowns a bit noticing Nozomi and Nico were no longer there and turns to Rin, Honoka, and Hanayo who had joined while they were out of the room.

"Rin, where did the other two go?" She asks, looking at her half eaten stew. Rin looks up from her almost empty bowl, before pointing towards the other exit.

"Nico lead Nozomi that way!" She responds, eating another spoonful of her stew. Eli only nods, beginning to finish her own meal.

Once she finished and Nozomi and Nico showed no signs of return, Eli stood from her chair and excused herself to go find Nozomi. They couldn't begin their rounds until Nozomi finished eating as well, and if she waited any longer her food would have become lukewarm. She heads towards the exit, humming quietly as she enters the hallway and glances around for any sign of the twin tailed girls. When she see's no sign of them, she turns to head back into the room until the sound of Nico's raised voice hits her ears.

"NOZOMI, JUST LISTEN!"

Eli doesn't waste time in stealthily heading towards the sounds of their voices, creeping quietly to the bend of the hallway and listening carefully to the ongoing conversation.

"... it's not that I don't trust people here, but I haven't forgotten why we're here in the first place!" Eli's eyebrows furrow as she only catches the last part of Nico's sentence.

"Nicocchi." Nozomi's voice is calm and quiet compared to Nico's earlier outburst.

"What if A-Rise is there tomorrow?! You really think I'll be able to leave you by yourself if they're around?!" the worry in Nico's voice is evident and Eli's eyebrows shoot up at the sound of the name of a group she hadn't heard before. There's a small pause and the only sounds Eli can hear is Nico's heavy breathing.

"Nicocchi, take a deep breath." The sound of Nico inhaling and exhaling is heard before Nozomi continues. "Now try to relax."

"I can't."

There's a soft sigh and the sound of movement, and it takes all of Eli not to turn the corner and see what they're doing. Nozomi's voice is still quiet as she continues speaking.

"Everything will be fine. Focus on the events and your job. Don't linger on the past."

"But Nozomi-" Nico's voice is cut off as Nozomi speaks a bit more sternly.

"Nicocchi, there isn't much else we can do. A-Rise can't do anything but participate in the games. They have no authority here and can't do anything without a hearing from the Queen after the events."

Eli decides she had heard enough and quickly and quietly heads back to the dinning hall. With fast steps, she approaches Umi with a serious face. Umi only raises an eyebrow before Eli takes a seat next to her, leaning in and quietly whispering so only they could hear.

"I have a task for you." She whispers. Umi waits patiently before Eli gives her new instructions.

"I need you to look into a group of Akiba knights called 'A-Rise'. I need you to find out who they are and what they do." Umi nods, mumbling that she will do her best. Eli gives a small thank you smile, patting her shoulder before standing up again. She was about to head back out into the hallway before Nozomi and Nico reenter, Nico's face stern as she steps past Eli and back to the table. Eli looks over to Nozomi, who wears a fake smile on her features as she looks at Eli.

"Sorry Elichi, did I keep you waiting?" She asks. Eli shakes her head.

"No, I was going to get you so that you'd be able to finish your dinner while its still warm." Eli responds hesitantly, concern on her features as she stares at Nozomi.

"Ah, well it's alright. I'm not that hungry anymore, so we can begin our evening round if you'd like." The fake cheeriness in her tone could fool anyone else, but Eli had been around her long enough now to know this it wasn't genuine. She looks at Nozomi carefully before giving a small nod. The two of them head towards the exit, Eli walking only a tiny bit ahead of Nozomi.

The silence between them begins eating away at Eli as she struggles not to ask what's wrong. The conversation she overheard must have been more important than she realized, and she knew Nozomi would tell her if she needed to. Eli glances at her and she can feel her gaze softening when she see's Nozomi's blank expression and her eyes clouded with thought. All her self control is lost and she voices her concern.

"Is everything alright?" She asks in a quiet tone. "You seem troubled." Nozomi smiles unconvincingly at Eli.

"I'm alright. Feeling tired from all of todays jobs." Eli furrows her brow at the excuse.

"Tired huh." It' more of a statement rather than a question, and Eli nudges her gently. "Sounds like a poor excuse to me." Nozomi laughs lightly, her face relaxing and a genuine smile appearing on her features.

"Nothing gets past you Elichi." she says quietly. Her expression turns darker as Eli watches her lose herself in her thoughts again. Feeling a bit pained by the expression on her features, Eli slowly links her arm around Nozomi's, catching the purple haired girls full attention as she looks at Eli with a questioning gaze.

"Hey," the blonde begins, her voice still quiet. "It's okay. You don't have to talk about whatever it is. But I'm here for you if you need me, okay?" Her eyes meet Nozomi's, and Eli watches as Nozomi stares at her with unblinking eyes. As Nozomi's eyes scan hers, searching for something that Eli couldn't quite pin down. With a surge of confidence, the captain continues.

"If there's any way I can help, I will. You're my best friend and I care about you." It was the first time Eli had voiced those words, and she could feel herself blushing faintly.

She watches as Nozomi's dim eyes are brought back to life by those words, widening in surprise and the friendly sparkle returning. Her eyes water a bit before she smiles sincerely at Eli, leaning her head on her shoulder.

"Thank you." She says quietly. Eli feels her smile growing a bit, glad her words helped give Nozomi the comfort she needed. They walked like that for the rest of their rounds, Eli's arm links with Nozomi's and Nozomi's head leaning on Eli's shoulder.

When their rounds were finished, Nozomi and Eli made their way back to their room, deciding to turn in early so that they were awake and ready for when the guests from Akiba arrived the next day. Nozomi had changed first, Eli politely waiting and getting the fire started. When she emerged from the screen Eli smiled at her before grabbing her night clothes and walking behind it. Nozomi took her spot on the bed, grabbing her hair brush and brushing her hair. Once she was finished, she tied it into a quick side ponytail and Eli emerged from behind the screen. Eli had untied her hair as she usually did, sitting at her table and brushing it quickly as well. Nozomi watched her, before reaching for the cards that sat on the side table. With a shaky breath, she called to Eli.

"Elichi?" Eli turns to her, a small smile on her face.

"Yes?"

"Do you believe in fate?" The question catches Eli off guard, and she stares in surprise as she contemplates her answer.

"Hm... I'm not too sure if I can give you an answer." She replies honestly, standing from her seat and making her way to the bed. "I believe that anyone can achieve any of their goals with lots of hard work, but I also believe that maybe fate has something to do with that anyway. I've never really given it too much thought."

Nozomi smiles at her as she sits down carefully, making sure that she didn't mess up the few cards Nozomi had laid face down on the comforter.

"So you aren't quite sure what to think of fate then, Elichi?" Nozomi asks her, and Eli only hums as an answer. Nozomi looks from Eli to her cards that faced downward, running her fingertips along the side of one of them.

"I feel a bit differently about it." The purple haired girl begins, laying out the last few cards before placing the ret of the deck off to the side. "Ever since I was a little girl, I've always believed fate had a way of deciding things for me."

"These cards used to belong to my great Aunt. When she was dying, she left them to me and told me that she saw a lot of myself in her, and that the cards were special. She told me everything there was to know about the tarot cards, and when she passed I began to study each card and their meanings. The day before she had died, she mentioned that if I asked the cards any questions about specific things, they would help guide me down the path fate had planned for me. Of course, the cards don't make the final decisions and nothing they say is set in stone. But if you make the right choices, the predictions the cards make end up being the reality you face."

"In a way, she was right. Every question I asked regarding the future was always an accurate prediction. " She flipped over the first card as she spoke. "I only ever asked serious questions. Questions like 'Will Akiba have a safe winter? Will Mother and Father have a safe journey out of town? Will Nicocchi and I make it out of Akiba and to Otonokizaka with no troubles?' Those were just a handful of questions I asked."

"All of the outcomes were exactly as the cards said they would be. I've never doubted them and they've always given me wise answers to help me make important decisions. I don't always rely on them for everything, but when I'm unsure it never hurts to see what the cards have to say."

Eli watches as Nozomi flips over the rest of the cards and begins to examine all six that now lie face up on the space in front of her. She looks down as well, unsure of what they were telling her. She lets her curiosity get the best of her and asks in a quiet voice.

"And what are the cards telling you now?" She asks.

Nozomi looks from the cards to Eli, a smile on her face.

"They're telling me to follow my heart and continue to do what I believe is right." Eli can't help but return the smile, and Nozomi continues speaking, grabbing the cards laid out in front of her and placing them back into her deck.

"So Elichi, will you listen to my story?" She asks a bit shyly, watching Eli. Eli gives her best reassuring smile before nodding.

"Of course, Nozomi."

Nozomi takes a small breath, placing her cards on the side table and beginning her tale.

"Nicocchi and I are fugitives." Eli furrows her brows a bit. Fugitives? How on earth did the two of them become fugitives? She looks at Nozomi confused and waits for her to continue.

"My full name is-" She pauses, swallowing a nervous lump in her throat "My full name is Tojo Nozomi." She says quietly, her eyes staring nervously at Eli for some sort of reaction. When Eli continued to look at her with furrowed brows and not saying a thing, Nozomi's stares warily at her as she continues her story.

"My family used to be very important figures in the Akiba kingdom. My parents worked hard and were great at what they did. Fate had been cruel and took them both much too soon, and so all of their duties fell to me. I was their only child, so I was the only one fit to take over their jobs." Eli's eyes waver lightly, watching as Nozomi closes her eyes and takes a moment to compose herself. She moves closer to her partner, her hand sliding next to Nozomi's and only gently touching it. The small touch helps and Nozomi opens her eyes, looking to Eli again.

"The current ruler of Akiba didn't like that for a reason I still don't know, and as a result he planted fake evidence and tried to pin the death of my parents on me. He convinced every noble and guard in the castle that I was guilty of murder and should be trialed for my crimes."

"If it wasn't for Nicocchi saving me and helping me get a letter out to her majesty, I might not be here." She exhales slowly, a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding finally released. Eli continued to listen, taking in the whole story bit by bit. "We thought to send the letter out to her majesty because in the past, she and my mother were very close friends. She was the only person we could think of who could save me from being arrested for a crime I never committed. We ran the moment the letter was sent out, and that was the moment we became wanted fugitives. Nicocchi for assisting me in my escape, and me for allegedly murdering my own parents"

"A lot of people went to great troubles to getting me here. Nicocchi especially. I'm so grateful to all of them for their help, but with Akiba arriving tomorrow, we're both on edge and nervous we'll be recognized. The Queen promised and assured that not a thing will happen, even if we're noticed, but I don't think Nicocchi will be completely reassured until the events are over and Akiba has left." Nozomi concludes her story, and Eli takes the opportunity to let her hand comfortingly cover Nozomi's.

"Then we won't let their efforts go to waste." She says with confidence. She smiles warmly at Nozomi, squeezing her hand gently in hers. "You're apart of our kingdom now. Our Queen sees you're innocent I'm sure. It doesn't matter to me what your past was." The words flow out of Eli's mouth unfiltered, her feelings on the situation being heard by just her and Nozomi.

"In a way, you coming to our kingdom with Nico was like a miracle for me. I'm not blind to the changes that have happened since you arrived and I'm very, very grateful. You may be my wife- well, fake wife, but wife nonetheless. But you're so much more than that." Eli's eyes meet Nozomi's as her cheeks tint a light pink. "You're my best friend Nozomi. I don't think I've ever said that about anybody in my life before."

The words still felt foreign to her since it was only her second time voicing it, but saying it out loud never failed to make her heart race and Nozomi's eyes twinkle with happiness.

"Erm, anyway." Eli continues awkwardly. "You've seen how I can be. I'm strict, I work hard and lose sight of taking care of myself properly. I'd rather spend my free time training than relaxing. But in only a short time of seeing me and even through my strict words and cold stares, you still reached out to me. It was the first time somebody had ever done that regardless of my stares and my attitude, and I'll never forget that."

"Elichi..." Is all Nozomi can muster, and Eli goes on with her feelings speech.

"I'll do my best to help and I'll make sure that nobody from Akiba takes you away from me or the kingdom," Eli's eyes are serious and she realizes how silly it might sound that she said herself first, but it was something Eli felt it was okay to be selfish with. To makes sure Nozomi knews every word of her small vow was true, she completes the sentence with two words. "I promise."

Nozomi's body had completely relaxed, relief washing through her before she pulls Eli closer to her, wrapping her arms around her in an embrace that conveyed all the thanks she felt. Eli shyly returned the gesture, smiling a bit and hugging Nozomi comfortingly. Nozomi whispers a small thank you in her ear, before pulling away.

"Elichi, do you mind if we keep this talk between ourselves?" Nozomi asks. "I don't want the rest of the castle learning this while Akiba is around. I'll tell our friends eventually but I'd like to wait until the festival is over."

"Of course." Eli promises, "This will be between us. Our little secret." When Nozomi gives her another small smile, Eli pulls the covers back and the two of them climb underneath, snuggling into their spots.

After wishing each other a good night, Eli is ready to welcome a good sleep filled with pleasant dreams. It isn't until she's just about to drift off that something from the story catches her attention, and her eyes shoot open. Tojo was a name she had heard before, but why couldn't she remember where? She looked up to the ceiling, wracking her brain for some kind of answer until sleep finally takes her and all thoughts on the name are lost in the void of her late night thoughts.

* * *

The following day was bright and sunny and the castle town bustled with activity as the Akiba kingdom had finally arrived right on schedule. The current ruler -King Ren- had arrived by fancy carriage and his entourage of knights participating in the games followed both on foot and horseback. Throughout the whole afternoon the guests had been arriving and the staff and Eli's squad had made sure the greeting between the King and Queen went as planned. Dinner was approaching fast and the Queen began her welcome speech to the members of the castle and village who were paying a visit to the castle while the guests arrived. Eli had spent most of the afternoon with the Queen and King Ren, being polite and formal as she met the Akiba king for the first time.

Off to the side of the court room, Nozomi and Nico stood together observing the crowds. Nozomi's hair was in a simple low ponytail, while Nico had put hers up into two messy buns. They scanned the Akiba crowds with careful eyes, no words being said between the two of them as the Queen began going over the events that would be happening in the next few days. They recognized the face of almost every knight who accompanied the King, and Nico's stomach sank at the thought of any of them recognizing her and Nozomi. The Queen's voice raises slightly, and everyone's eyes fall on her as she concludes her speech.

"Our events may all officially begin tomorrow, but with the arrival of our wonderful guests, it is with great pleasure that I declare that the Summer Solstice festival has officially begun! Good luck to all the courageous knights who have signed up for our main events, and let us all make this years festival a good one!"

Loud cheers sound throughout the courtroom and the Queen smiles, turning to her guest and initiating a conversation between her, Eli and the King.

Maki enters the room and makes a quick scan of everything before making her way to Nozomi and Nico, watching as Nozomi smiled at her approaching. Nozomi nudges Nico, causing her to look away from the crowd and to Maki. At the sight of her partner, she visibly relaxed more.

"Good afternoon Maki-chan." Nozomi greets her.

"Afternoon Nozomi-chan. Nico-chan." Maki returns the greeting, standing on the other side of Nico and observing everyone in the courtroom. "I'll be glad when this is all over and the castle goes back to being a nice and peaceful."

"You and me both." Nico adds in an annoyed tone, crossing her arms. Nozomi giggles lightly.

"Just wait until your event days. The both of you will be so focused you won't care about the amount of people in the castle." Nico and Maki only hum at the same time, causing another laugh from Nozomi. The sight of a familiar blonde ponytail and gold chest plate moving towards them catches Nozomi's eye, and she smile a bit.

"Looks like Elichi's finished." She muses, before turning to the girls next to her. "I'll be off on my pre dinner rounds with Elichi then. I'll see you both in the dining hall." She smiles warmly to the two of them before walking over to the captain, and Maki and Nico watch as the two reunite and make their way out of the court room.

"Did you hear anything?" Nico asks in a hushed tone, leaning closer to Maki so their conversation would only be heard between the two of them.

"Nothing. I read the list a good four times too. There aren't any participants by the names of Kira Tsubasa, Toudou Erena or Yuuki Anju." Maki replies just as quietly, and Nico sighs in relief.

"Good." Nico glances in the direction of where the King stood watching the Queen talk. Her eyes narrowing slightly. Maki's watching her carefully, lightly nudging her with her arm to get her attention off the King and onto her.

"It'll be alright Nico-chan."

Nico only mumbles a small thanks and Maki has to resist the urge to sigh. Consoling people really wasn't her thing, but there was one thing she knew would brighten Nico's mood. With a little bit of courage, Maki reaches out and takes Nico's hand, pulling her from the spot they stood and towards the hallway. Nico cries out surprised, stumbling after Maki.

"Maki-chan, what the hell?! Where are we going?!" She asks, staring perplexed at her red headed companion. Maki doesn't glance back as she replies.

"We're gunna visit Kuro." She says simply. "You like visiting him when you're feeling stressed, so I figured it'd be nice to see him before eating or something." Her other hand had found its way to her hair like it always did, and Nico's eyes widened as she stumbled after Maki. With a small laugh, she squeezes Maki's hand and speeds up a bit, matching her pace with Maki's and grinning brightly at her.

"Geeze Maki-chan, are you trying to get me in a better mood?" she asks teasingly, cautiously eyeing her to see what kind of reaction Maki would give her.

Maki glances at her, her fingers still tight around Nico's hand as she mumbles.

"Is it working?" Is all she asks, and Nico's grin falters a bit from the honest question. She laughs again, increasing her pace and beginning to pull Maki along down the hallway.

"I think you can answer that yourself." Is all she says as she pulls her along, excitedly stepping towards the exit that lead to the castle stables. Maki only smiles to herself, mentally patting herself on the back for successfully making Nico smile for the first time that day.


	9. The Festival

AN: Welcome to the longest chapter of TKATM! The summary is short, but it wouldn't be fun if I gave away everything in the chapter in the summary~ Instead of making two separate chapters I combined both chapters to make one long one. This chapter is full of many things, fluff, action, humor, and even a bit of angst. Followed by A LOT of N girls from SIF. I want to give a special shout out to nozoeliwiki and fraulein-nico on tumblr who have both drawn really amazing fanart for this story!

Thank you for reading, commenting, reviewing and faving! Enjoy this long update!

* * *

The first day passed by in the blink of an eye. There weren't many archery competitors, and it had been an easy win for Umi. They celebrated loudly and proudly at a very late dinner time, Honoka and Rin singing a celebratory song as the squad ate. They coaxed Hanayo into singing along with them, increasing the good mood the table had. Eli, Umi and Nozomi were going over the lists for tomorrows sword fighting event with one another, discussing who would be positioned where and exactly how the event would have to go.

"There are almost triple the amount of knights in this event as there were in todays." Eli hums concerned as she looks down the list on the parchment she held. "If we had another day we could do a victory round for the knights who lose, but it looks like we'll have to plan that for next year."

"I agree. I did not expect this many competitors this time around." Umi says, taking her quill and dipping it in a small bottle of ink she had brought with her. "How are the pairs coming along, Nozomi?" She asks as she begins writing on a blank page.

Nozomi finishes scribbling along a much larger piece of parchment that she had on the table, pulling away once she finished a line and looking to Umi and Eli, who waited patiently. She smiles and holds up the paper.

"I've finally got them recorded onto the chart. We'll have to put a time limit on the beginning matches so that we'll be able to get through all the rounds, but the winners of each round will face off another winner. We have twelve different matches going on in the beginning, eventually it becomes an odd number with the winners." Nozomi gestures to the chart. "It'll get down to three different knights squaring off against one another."

"That wouldn't be smart." Eli says with concern in her voice. "If two Otonokizaka or two Akiba knights end up in the final round, it would mean a brief tag team to knock out one person, then the other two brawling it out with each other. Not very fair if you ask me."

"What if we gave one of them a free pass?" Umi asks. "We could get the Queen, Princess and King to take a vote on which winner they'd like to see in the final match. That way, the two not chosen get to spar and the winner of that match will face the knight of choice."

"Great idea Umi!" Eli says with a bit of excitement, looking to Nozomi. "So tomorrow Umi will gather a vote before the last two matches, and you and I will keep the chart updated after every match."

"Alright Elichi~" Nozomi grins, rolling up the now finished chart. "With this out of the way, it looks like we don't have anything more to do before bed. Thank you for your help Umi." Nozomi smiles warmly to the blue haired girl, who returns the smile with one of her own.

"It was my pleasure." She says, turning her attention to Honoka and Rin who had gotten a bit out of hand with their singing and were now swaying back and forth, their arms around each others shoulders as they giggled between lines of the song. Her focus with Eli and Nozomi was lost when a glass was knocked over and Umi began scolding the two of them.

Nozomi took this opportunity to look over to Maki who had been absentmindedly pushing her potatoes around her plate with her fork, her attention on nothing in particular. Her eyes would occasionally glance across the table to where Nico and Kotori sat, the both of them talking amongst each other. The twin tailed girl smiled to herself before deciding to get Maki' attention.

"Something up, Maki-chan?" She asks, and Maki looks over to her with slightly wider eyes. She quickly composes herself and shakes her head.

"No. Nothing really." She lies, putting her fork down. Nozomi only stares at her with an eyebrow raised, and she sighs. "It really is nothing, Nozomi."

"Are you nervous about tomorrow?" She asks, Maki only tenses slightly, and Nozomi leans towards her so her voice is at a whisper. "Or has your mind been lingering on someone else~?" When Maki swerves her head to her with eyes wide, Nozomi laughs.

"Ah, looks like I hit the nail right on the head~!"

"Nozomi!" Maki hisses "What do you know about that?!" Her face has reddened lightly and her voice is hushed. Nozomi hums amused.

"Hmm~? Know about what~?" She smiles innocently towards Maki, who's eyes narrow.

"I can't tell if you actually know anything or if you're just teasing me."

"What if it's a bit of both? You'll never know unless you tell me what it is you're thinking about." Nozomi's mischievous grin causes Maki to sigh again, and she pulls away from Nozomi and goes back to poking her potatoes.

"I'm just thinking about tomorrow." Maki responds, hoping Nozomi doesn't touch on her latter idea of Maki's thoughts. "Today went by so fast, I feel like I'm not prepared for the event I'm in."

"Pre event nerves huh?" Nozomi hums a bit, smiling more sincerely at Maki. "You have nothing to worry about Maki-chan. You've been training hard for this. You'll do great tomorrow."

"Yeah, you're right." Maki says after a moment of contemplation. She puts her fork down again before smiling at Nozomi. "Thank you."

Eli smiles a bit to herself as she overhears Nozomi giving Maki that small bit of confidence.

"Hey hey! Nico-chan, have you seen anyone you recognize yet?!" Rin asks suddenly, catching the attention of everyone. Nico turns from Kotori to Rin, thinking about her answer.

"I haven't been paying much attention to the guests." She says flatly. "I've been focusing on the events and my work."

"Ehh? Well what were you doing when you were watching everyone during the welcome ceremony yesterday?" Rin asks curiously as Nico tenses.

"I-I wasn't watching everyone!" the ruby eyed girl objects. "I was thinking about my jousting strategy! That's why Maki and I went to the stables after! We made sure Kuro was in top conditions and everything!"

Hanayo and Nozomi glance to Maki and the red haired girl looks away from the both of them. They silently giggle to themselves before Honoka speaks up.

"The joust isn't until the last day! You have time!" She grins to Nico, before looking to Maki determinedly. "Tomorrow is when Maki-chan and I face off! May the best knight win, Maki-chan!" Her voice is filled with confidence as she challenges Maki. Maki only stares at Honoka before she nods, her own confidant smile growing on her face.

"May the best knight win." She agrees.

More chatter begins around the table, Nozomi observing it all with fondness. The first day really had everyone in high spirits and the excitement Honoka felt was rubbing off on the rest of them. She leant over, letting her head fall onto Eli's shoulder as she watched the happy girls socialize with one another. She felt her own surge of happiness for the simple fact that she was there and she got to witness all these good and fun times. It was moments like these she intended to cherish forever. A small chuckle from Eli catches her attention, and she glances up to the blonde she rested against.

"Tired?" Eli asks quietly, and Nozomi closes her eyes as she smiles softly.

"Mmm, no. Just happy that I'm here with all of you." She whispers. Eli smiles warmly, wrapping her arm around Nozomi and hugging the purple haired girl lightly to her.

The gesture doesn't go unnoticed, and Honoka beams towards the both of them.

"Aww, look! Happy wives!" She teases as everyone looks over to Eli and Nozomi. Eli blushes slightly, glancing away from them. Umi's face tints a light shade of pink, ruining the stern gaze she now tried to give Eli.

"C-Captain! That is shameless! Why at the dinner table?!" Eli can feel her face heat up more and Nozomi laughs, shifting herself closer as she snuggled against Eli more. Nico peers over at Eli and Nozomi, her voice flat when she starts speaking.

"You two could make people sick with how adorable you're behaving." Nozomi's eyes open and a small smirk is on her lips as she stares at Nico.

"Hm? Does Nicocchi want to cuddle too~?"

"Not with you two."

"Ehh? Elichi and I aren't good enough to cuddle you then?" Nozomi has a fake hurt tone to her voice, before her emerald eyes meet Maki's amethyst ones. They narrow slightly and a coy smile rests on her features and Maki quickly grabs her water, taking a sip to distract herself.

"I guess Maki-chan will just have to cuddle with you~!" Maki chokes on the water she had just sipped, quickly putting her cup down and covering her mouth. Nico blushes and objects loudly and between Nico's shouts and Maki's coughing, Eli isn't sure where to look. Two flustered glares are on Nozomi as she laughs, pulling herself away from Eli and listening to Nico scolding her on how her teasing can go too far. Through Nico's scolding, Eli and Nozomi make a brief moment of eye contact. Nozomi's grin is still on her face and Eli shakes her head, chuckling to herself.

Soon the squad decides to call it a night, the girls on after dinner patrol heading to their duties and everyone else going about their own business. Eli and Nozomi walk arm in arm down the hallway to their room, Nozomi skipping out on her daily garden visit. The two had decided Nozomi's garden visits should be postponed while the festival went on, this way there were no opportunities for her to be alone and captured by anyone who recognized her. Nico and Maki walked with Rin and Hanayo until they reached their rooms. Maki said good night to the trio, and in turn they wished her a good night. As Nico was about to shut her door, she gave Maki a small smile and shut it. Maki shut her door not long after, her face beet red and her hands still lingering on the door handle.

* * *

Day two had officially begun and Rin was working hard to gather all twenty four event participants. Maki and Honoka were the first she gathered, followed by Fumiko and Hideko. It didn't take the short ginger haired girl long to gather all the participants from Otonokizaka, and now it was just a matter of getting the attention of the Akiba knights participating. The event would officially begin in forty five minutes and Rin began shouting loudly out in the dining hall.

"Every Akiba knight participating in today's sword fighting event, please gather here! This is the second last call and Captain Ayase encourages everyone to gather now so we can give you a proper run down of how the event will go!"

One by one knights began leaving their breakfast tables, making their way over to the small group that Rin had gathered. She began doing a head count, smiling when all the knights who signed up were present.

"Alright everybody! Please follow me to the arena where we'll meet up with Captain Ayase!" Rin beams at the group of girls before her before leading them out of the dining hall. Maki and Honoka waited until they were the final girls left before following the large group towards their destination.

It wasn't long until they all reached the arena and in the center of the ring Eli stood patiently by herself, smiling as everyone entered after Rin. Eli soon dismissed the ginger haired girl, telling her to assist Umi in preparing the rest of the castle for the citizens who would be arriving to watch the fights. She did a double count herself, making sure all twenty four girls were present. Once everyone was accounted for, Eli cleared her throat and began speaking.

"Welcome to the debriefing of todays event everyone. I'm Captain Ayase Eli, and I'll be giving you a run down on todays schedule." Everyone stood alert and waiting as Eli continued.

"With the help of my squire and one of my right hand knights, we've paired each of you up with a partner. Because of the large amount of you participating, each of the first twelve rounds will be limited to ten minutes. The knight who successfully disarms their opponent will go on to the next round where they will face the next winner, and it will go on like that. If you're unable to successfully disarm your opponent before the time limit is up, then there will be a brief sudden death match. Whichever knight can knock the other off of their feet first will move on to the next round. Unfortunately we don't have enough time for rounds between the knights who lose, so if you've lost, you're out and will be asked to sit out for the remainder of the event.

"As we get closer to the end of the event, there will be a point where there will be three winners. Whichever knight out of those three impresses Queen Minami, Princess Minami and King Ren the most will get a free pass into the final round while the other two battle to see who will take that spot in the last fight." Eli glanced around each of the girls to make sure she still had their attention before continuing.

"You all will be using your real swords and we encourage participants to wear their armour. If you choose not to wear your armour and suffer an injury, it is your own fault and you will be disqualified and sent to the medical tent set up outside the arena for treatment.

"With all of that being said, there will be absolutely no killing. Anyone who aims for the vitals of their opponent will be stopped and disqualified from the event immediately. Have I made myself clear?"

"Yes Captain!" The twenty four girls chorus, and Eli smiles lightly.

"Glad to hear it. The event will officially begin in half an hour, and by now villagers from the town will be making their way into the stands. If you have any last minute preparations I suggest you all get to them now. The first match will be between-" Eli pauses and unfolds the parchment she held in her hands and taking a quick look at the names. "Kikkawa Mizuki and Osakawa Shizuku. If you're either of those girls, please be ready in the next twenty minutes if possible. There's a chance we may get to start the event earlier than planned and if that is the case we'd like the first two competitors to be ready."

With all of that said, Eli dismissed the small group before her. Both Maki and Honoka had known the rules already since they were apart of Eli's squad, and the two of them were prepared with their suits of armour on and their swords attached to their belts. Maki's hair was in a small side pony tail to her right while Honoka's was in the exact same style, but to her left. When they were the only two girls standing in the ring, Eli gave them a friendlier smile.

"Are you two ready?" She asked, walking over to them.

"Absolutely." Honoka said in a serious voice. "Are you, Maki-chan?"

"Y-yeah." Maki replies awkwardly, looking away in embarrassment. Eli chuckles lightly and watches as villagers begin making their way into the stands. She turns back to them, quieting her voice.

"Umi would say its unprofessional but since I'm the Captain I don't see any harm in sharing this with the both of you." Maki and Honoka look at Eli curiously.

"Maki, your match is fourth. You'll be up against an Akiba knight named Mido Yuri. Honoka, your match is ninth and Jennifer will be our opponent. I'm confident you two will make it far." Eli gives them one last reassuring smile before leaving the two of them and walking over to Nozomi, who had been assisting the villagers into the stands.

Maki decided to walk over to the side lines and wait out the rest of the time there. She was on edge and began mentally counting down the minutes to her very first tournament match. In roughly an hour she would be standing in that ring battling it out to win. She reflected on how hard she had been training and all the time spent preparing for this day and these fights.

The time flew by as Maki's thoughts lingered on this and soon the arena was full of chattering people, waiting for the first match to begin. Knights who were participating in the games stood around the outside of the ring clad in their armour and waiting for the rounds to begin. Pinned to a wooden board at the side was the chart Nozomi had made at dinner the day before, different names listed at the bottom in tiny boxes with lines connecting them.

A loud horn is sounded and the crowd is quiet as Queen Minami, King Ren and Kotori made their way up the stands and to the shaded area where their seats waited for them. Once seated, Eli walked into the center of the ring again, looking up to the many guests that sat quietly and patiently.

"Welcome to day two of Otonokizaka's Summer Solstice festival!" Eli announced loudly. "Thank you all for joining us in todays highly anticipated event: the sword fighting competition!" A few cheers came from the audience and Eli waited until the crowd quieted down again before she gave the audience a run down of the rules that were stated to the knights before hand. Maki listened uninterested as she looked out into the crowd. She spotted Hanayo not too far from where Kotori sat, sitting on her own stool just off to the side. In the lower area of the stand near the entrance sat Rin, an empty seat next to hers. Umi was down on the ground near the chart, and next to her stood Nozomi with her low pony tail tied tightly. Honoka wasn't too far from them, an excited grin on her features as she listened closely to Eli who began finishing up her introduction speech. Maki frowned when she realized the one girl she had been scanning for didn't seem to be around.

"With all of that being said, lets get this event started!" The crowd cheered again and Eli looked around the ring to the knights. "Kikkawa Mizuki and Osakawa Shizuku! Please come forward!"

A girl with long brown hair and steel armour was the first to step into the ring, her hair tied up into a bun as she slipped on her steel helmet with each step she took toward the center. From the other side of the ring a lighter faded redish haired girl was stepping in, and Maki recognized her as one of Otonokizaka's own knights who patrolled the town and gave Eli updates on the citizens and any crime that went on outside the castle.

The two girls shook hands and took their stances, unsheathing their swords and preparing themselves for the match. Eli looked up to the Royals, and when the Queen nodded to begin Eli announced for the match to start. The two girls immediately went at it, not wanting to waste a moment of their precious match time. Maki watches uninterestedly, both girls anxious and working hard to knock the other girls sword away. She idly plays with the handle of her own, oblivious to the person who had been creeping up beside her.

"Hey Maki-chan." Maki leaps about two feet in the air in surprise from the voice and she turns her head to Nico, who now wore a shit eating grin and her hair tied up in the two buns she wore the day before.

"Did I scare you?" She asks coyly and Maki frowns at her, displeased as she tried to calm herself down from the scare.

"Never do that again. Ever." She grumbles as Nico laughs. "What are you doing down here? Shouldn't you be sitting with Rin?"

"I did a quick scan of the list to see the Akiba girls who signed up." Nico replies. "The only one I think you should worry about is Hitomi. She's a real tough customer and merciless when it comes to battle. If you end up fighting against her I think the best way for you to win would be wearing her down. If you and I can continue doing hit after hit and end in a draw, than I don't have any doubts about you being able to knock the sword out of Hitomi's hands." Maki blinks surprised. Nico had taken the time to look into all the girls participating and even give her advice on fighting her old comrades. The red head narrows her eyes at Nico and lifts her hand, bopping her fist down lightly on the top of Nico's head and earning a surprised gasp from Nico.

"Hey!" She grumbled, rubbing the slightly sore spot on the top of her head as she peered at Maki. "What the heck was that for!?"

"That's for giving me pointers on how to win." Maki responds, turning away and looking to the match that had ended while they were talking. "Any Akiba knight that thinks they have a chance in beating me will have to think again."

"Woah! Someones cocky." Nico laughs again, bringing her hands down and watching Eli announce the next two girls into the ring: Otonokizaka's Fumiko and Akiba's Shido Misaki.

"I-I'm not cocky!" Maki sputters, her eyes back on Nico. "I'm confident. There's a difference."

"Right. Confident." Nico says, watching the match begin. "That's why you were nervously playing with your sword earlier." Maki flinches at Nico's observation and keeps her eyes on the girls in front of her.

"So what if I was?" Maki mumbles quietly, and Nico shrugs.

"There's nothing wrong with being nervous, Maki-chan. You've been practicing, you're ready for this." the two of them look at each other and Nico gives her a small grin. "You'll kick all their asses."

The two stare at each other for what seemed like forever as the fight in front of them became background noise. Maki wondered if this would be a good opportunity to ask Nico what she felt for her. The butterflies in her stomach swarmed endlessly and Maki wasn't sure how she was able to stomach all these nerves. She opens her mouth, ready to speak until Misaki is knocked off her feet and her weapon falling not far from her. The match is ended and Fukimo is declared the winner. Everything Maki had wanted to ask was lost as her match was now only one loss away. She turned from Nico and stared out to the ring nervously as the next two competitors entered.

"Geeze, Maki-chan you're hopeless." Nico says, grabbing Maki's hand to get her attention. "Here, look at me. I'll give you a good luck charm that's sure to help you win."

Maki turned her attention back to her partner and waited. Nico let go of her hand and closed her eyes. Maki raised one of her eyebrows, wondering if Nico had chosen to say a prayer until suddenly both of her hands whipped up, her middle and ring fingers folded down while her pinkie, index finger and thumbs stood out.

"Nico Nico Niiii~" Nico chanted, doing a few arm movements and keeping her hands held near her face. To top off the charm, she gave Maki a small wink and a smile.

Maki stared blankly at Nico for a couple seconds before quickly turning away, her hand over her mouth and her shoulders shaking from trying to keep her laughter contained. Nico's smile quickly faltered and she lowered her hands as one of her eyebrows twitched.

"H-hey! Are you laughing!?" Nico asks, watching as Maki crumpled into herself more to try and stop her laughs. "Maki-chan! Answer me!"

Holding back her laughs was futile and Maki suddenly bursted out laughing, catching the attention of a couple knights that stood near her. She held her sides laughing while Nico pouted next to her, crossing her arms and waiting for Maki to get ahold of herself.

"W-What the heck was THAT?!" Maki asks through her laughs.

"It was my good luck charm!" the raven haired girl replies slightly annoyed that that had only made Maki laugh harder.

"You- You looked ridiculous!" She wipes a single tear that had fallen from her eye as Nico huffed.

"I beg to differ! I looked adorable!"

Maki eventually composes herself, sighing contently.

"Well, you're not wrong there." The words slip out before Maki can even think properly and the both of them whip their heads towards each other. Maki gapes a bit as Nico's eyes are wide and a small smirk begins to form.

"There! You said it yourself!" Nico points at her and declares. "The Nishikino Maki admitted I'm cute!" Maki's face turns a brighter shade of red as she hopelessly tries to find a way to counter what she had said. A sword suddenly clatters loudly on the ground and Maki and Nico both look away to the sound.

"Sana Yuki has been disarmed! The winner of this round is Fukuhara Mikoto!" A short girl takes off her helmet, her tiny pigtails popping out as she held her hand out to shake her opponents hand. Maki swallows nervously, picking up her helmet.

"You're up now?!" Nico asks, and Maki nods. She slips her helmet on and turns to Nico, giving her a charming smile.

"Thanks for helping me calm my nerves, Nico-chan." Maki says sincerely. "I'll win this round for you." She gives Nico a playful wink as her name is called by Eli. Nico gapes a bit as she watches Maki march proudly into the center of the ring, her cheeks burning brightly. She quickly scrambled away from the inside of the ring to where Rin sat her seat so she could get a better view of Maki's fight, the smile Maki gave her being burnt into her memory.

Yuri's long purplish hair was tied into a ponytail that draped down her back from under her helmet. Her eyes were bored as she held out her hand to Maki. Maki shook it firmly, making eye contact with her opponent before she pulled her hand away. The two of them draw their swords and before long Eli has announced that the match had begun.

Maki doesn't waste any time, throwing in a hard strike right in the beginning. Yuri's eyes widen a bit in surprise as she defends, blocking with her own sword. The two begin hitting back and forth, Maki taking in her opponents stance and movements and quickly determining the fastest way to win. Yuri had a strong hit, but her movements were quite slow. All Maki had to do was get Yuri to slip just a tiny bit and the win would be hers.

After five minutes of nonstop blocks and strikes. Maki made her move. She purposely got Yuri into the offence, the other girl swinging her blade toward Maki's. Maki made a small sidestep, causing Yuri to stumble forward with the amount of force she had been using. The purple eyed girl smirked, her opponent was right where she wanted her. With one quick clash of swords, Yuri's hand slipped and Maki was able to fling her sword out of her hands and onto the ground a few feet away. The crowd cheered loudly, but the only sounds that reached Maki's ears were the excited bellows that came from Nico and Rin. She looked over to where they sat and saw the both of them standing, cheering loudly and proudly.

Eli announces Maki's win and Maki shakes Yuri's hand again before making her way to the sidelines. The adrenaline rush from winning her very first tournament match was more than she could have expected, and as she took her spot on the sidelines she waited excitedly as the next two girls entered the ring.

The next matches went by quickly, every knight getting down to business and taking out their opponents one by one. The fastest match so far had been between Kadota Tsurugi and Shiga Hitomi, Tsurugi being disarmed within the first two minutes. Maki eyed her carefully when she walked back to the sidelines. Nico's advice was much appreciated in that moment as Maki began to analyze what she would do if she were to face her down the line.

Honoka's name had been announced and both her and her opponent -Jennifer- stepped into the ring. Before Honoka reached the center, she looked up towards the princess. Kotori smiled at her, blowing her a quick good luck kiss. The ginger haired girl grinned, reaching up to catch it before making the final steps to the center. She shook hands with the blonde haired girl who stood proudly, and their match began in an instant.

Both of their movements were so quick, Maki had a hard time keeping an eye on them. By the looks of it Honoka had started with the upper hand, but Jennifer caught on quickly to Honoka's plan and defended with all of her being. Back and forth hits and misses, blocks and pull backs, that was all their match consisted of. This continued for the whole span of ten minutes, where Eli announced that the sudden death rule was now in affect. A glint of determination flashed in Honoka's blue iris', and the knight swung right at the lower part of Jennifer's sword with incredible force. The vibrations from the hit cause Jennifer's hands to shake, and she grit her teeth as she tried to keep a firm grip on her own blade. Honoka pulled back again, hitting the sword in the exact same spot as before. She kept this up for a few more strikes, and soon Jennifer's hands opened with her sword falling in between the two of them.

"Kousaka Honoka is the winner!" Eli shouts, the crowd cheering loudly. Umi and Kotori smiled proudly as they watched Honoka shake Jennifer's hand. The ginger haired girl turned to Umi, her eyes flashing with excitement as she bounded over excitedly.

"Umi-chan! I won my first match!" She flashes Umi a toothy grin and the navy haired knight laughs lightly. She reaches out and pats the top of Honoka's helmet, nodding proudly.

"Well done Honoka." Umi congratulates her, a tiny loving smile on her face. "Keep that up and you'll win the competition for Kotori easily."

"Hey, I'm not just doing it for Kotori-chan, Umi-chan." Honoka says with a small pout and light blush.

"That's right, you probably want to win it a lot for yourself too." Umi says with a nod. Honoka's pout increases and she nudges Umi lightly with her elbow.

"Dummy! I meant I'm doing it for you too. I want to make you proud too!" Nozomi can't help but listen in to the conversation between the two of them as Eli gets the next match started. She glances sideways and watches them with curious eyes as Umi speaks.

"Honoka," She begins, her eyes looking at her worriedly. "You've always made me very proud. You don't need to win the tournament to earn those feelings. I've been proud of you from the very beginning."

Honoka's blush increases and Umi's own cheeks heat up slightly. Nozomi smiles knowingly as she watches Honoka laugh, pulling her lover into a small hug. Umi flushes embarrassed, mumbling Honoka's name before shyly returning her embrace. The purple haired girl glances away from the two of them and keeps her eyes on the match that now went on.

By the time the first round of battles are over, the crowd eagerly awaits as the second round begins. The time period for these matches were extended to fifteen minutes, with a five minute sudden death rule going in place should the competitors last longer than fifteen minutes. The first round between Fumiko and Shizuku was over quickly, Shizuku being the victor.

The second match was between Maki and the short pigtailed girl Mikoto, who entered the ring with a bounce to her step and a small smirk on her face. Maki walked with grace back into the ring, shaking Mikoto's hand and staring blankly at her. Before Eli could announce the match would start, Mikoto spoke.

"If you didn't see before, I'm pretty tough." She boasts. "I'm the right hand knight to Captain Shiga, beating me won't be easy." Maki smirks slightly, drawing her sword and looking directly into Mikoto's prideful gaze.

"How fitting. I look forward to the challenge. " Is all she says. She glances to the side where Hitomi stood watching with a bored expression.

The match soon begins and like lightning, both Mikoto and Maki strike quickly at one another. Maki's words had egged Mikoto on and she blocked, dodged and struck Maki with careful movements. Maki observed her closely through the hits and blocks, amused at how determined Mikoto was to find a weakness in Maki's performance. Seven minutes of this goes by and Maki can see Mikoto grit her teeth, frustrated that she hadn't beaten the redhead or even found a weakness in her form. When Mikoto's eyes find Maki's face, Maki makes sure to make direct eye contact with her and smirk. This sets the shorter haired girl off the deep end, and without thinking she lifts her sword high and cries out, determined to make this her winning strike. Maki quickly dodges the hit, sidestepping away from the strike quickly. Mikoto curses and Maki's smirk is back on her face as she takes the upper hand of the battle.

With a quick swing of her sword, Mikoto has to turn her body fast to block the oncoming strike. The swords clash with a powerful clang, and Mikoto's hands slip ever so slightly. Both girls quickly notice and before anyone can blink, Maki has pulled back and given one final strike, causing Mikoto's sword to propel out of her hands and onto the ground. The audience cheers loudly, the amount of applause and excited shouts from villagers background noise as Eli announces Maki's win. The red head sheaths her sword, looking at Mikoto who stared bitterly at the ground.

"See, it was very fitting." Maki says, getting her opponents attention. "The audience definitely agrees that a match between Captain Shiga's right hand and one of Captain Ayase's was definitely a highlight of today's matches. Don't you think?" Mikoto's eyes widen a bit before she smiles slightly embarrassed and Maki stretches her hand out to shake.

"I should've done more research on you, Nishikino-san." Mikoto says, shaking Maki's hand. "Great match. You're an impressive knight."

"Same to you." Maki returns the compliment and the two of them walk out of the ring, Mikoto grabbing her sword as she exited. Maki looks over to wear Nico and Rin sat, the both of them grinning proudly in her direction. She looks away slightly embarrassed as she reaches the sidelines.

The next couple rounds end quickly and the two of the three matches of the final round were already decided. Maki would be facing off against Shizuku, and Otonokizaka's Saiki Fuu would be against the Akiba Captain Hitomi. Eli's squad watched intensely as Honoka's next match came upon her. If she won, she would be in the third round and from there both her and Maki had the chance to make it to the semi final match.

As quickly as the match had begun, it was over. Koyuki had fumbled after Honoka's first hit, unable to compete with the strength Honoka was putting into her attacks. In only five hits back and forth, the Akiba knight was disarmed and weaponless. Eli sounded the end of the match and both girls exited the ring and made their way back to the sidelines. Honoka had a small pout on her lips, wishing that the match was more of a challenge. Umi assured her that if she made it to the end and faced off against Maki, she would be glad that her second match was an easy win.

The final match was long one, but Shinomiya Akiru of Akiba was victorious. With that win, the third round of matches was set in stone with Honoka being Akiru's opponent. Umi took a quick glance at their tournament chart while Nozomi scribbled Akiru's name next to the third block on the third level of the chart. Both Umi and Nozomi looked to Eli, giving her the thumbs up that it was good to proceed to the next round. Eli stepped forward into the center of the ring and spoke.

"We've entered the third round of todays event! The match time will be increased to twenty minutes! Sudden death shall still be five!" She shouted loudly and clearly to the lively audience. "A small reminder that the winning knights of this round will be judged by her Majesty Queen Minami, the lovely Princess Kotori, as well as our honoured guest King Ren of Akiba!" There's a small bit of applause before the crowd grows silent. Eli clears her throat again and begins speaking.

"The first match will be between Osakawa Shizuku and Nishikino Maki! Please step forward!"

Both girls stepped into the ring with very serious expressions. The two of them had reached this far with an aim to win and Maki didn't intend to lose. They gave a firm hand shake, drawing their swords and waiting patiently for Eli's signal. Once given, Shizuku made the first move as she lunged towards Maki with intense speed.

Maki was certainly kept on her toes as Shizuku struck at her. The long haired girl she faced was quite fast and made sure to keep her weaknesses hidden from the redhead. Maki only had time to defend and dodge as Shizuku relentlessly hit at her. It annoyed the redhead as she narrowed her gaze, trying to find some sort of opening and take the offensive from the Akiba girl.

A strike form the side catches Maki off guard and her footing fumbles. She quickly catches herself, but it had been too late. Shizuku's sword was heading for her again and there was no way Maki would be able to block it in time. With quick thinking, Maki let herself fall forward, tucking herself into a front roll and completely passing by Shizuku. With her sword still in hand, Maki springs back up to her feet and turns to face Shizuku, who only looked back baffled that she had missed Maki at such a close distance. The crowd had fallen silent for a brief moment before the sounds of Nico and Rin shouting excitedly encourage everyone to cheer.

With a new surge of adrenaline Maki takes the offensive away from the baffled girl in front of her. The girl in turn began blocking, her eyes still wide from the impressive front roll Maki did. The match continues this way, Maki hitting and Shizuku blocking to the best of her ability. Both girls did their best not to show any signs of fatigue, but Shizuku was beginning to slow down. Any longer and she would be beat by a simple tap against her sword.

It was right before the sudden death time was announced that Shizuku lost, her sword falling pathetically from her grasp as both her and Maki pulled away from a hit. She breathes heavily, her hands falling to her knees and beginning to take in deep breaths of air. Maki pants as she slouches, the loud applause and cheers of the crowd echoing in her ears. She can vaguely hear Eli announce her as the winner before she sheaths her sword again, shaking Shizuku's hand and walking over to the sidelines once again. This time, she stood closer to Umi and Honoka, who congratulated her the moment she reached them. She gives a small breathless smile toward the two, thanking them quietly. She could feel eyes on her and with a small glance, she could only see Nico's ruby iris' and proud smile. She returned Nico's smile, standing straighter and sighing contently. The rush of energy she felt from these matches reminded her of the spar she had with Nico. These opponents weren't nearly as tough as that match had been, but it was a feeling she really enjoyed. She looked onward to the next two girls in the ring, watching closely as their match began.

Time passed by quickly and the last matches of round three were finally over. Hitomi beating Fuu in only twelve minutes, while Honoka and Akiru battled it out until the bitter end. Honoka ended up victorious during the sudden death as Akiru lost when she lost her footing after blocking a hit from Honoka. Maki began wondering if Honoka's secret to getting so far was waiting until the time was right to hit everyone with the full force of her strong arms.

The three victors now stood in the center of the ring, awaiting the vote from the royals who sat at the top of the stands. All three girls wore serious expressions, watching as the three of them discussed with one another who they saw fit to get the free pass into the very final match. Kotori looks over to Hanayo and she stands, getting the results and moving from her spot down the stands and towards the ring. She hurries over to Eli, who stood not too far from the three patient knights. Whispering her answer, Eli smiles lightly and thanks the shy girl, dismissing her and looking out to the crowd.

"Our royals have given us an answer!" She begins. "It was with a careful decision that they have decided Nishikino Maki shall be moving on to the final round, and she will be facing whichever knight manages to win in the second final match of the day!"

Maki's eyes widen and she looks over to Honoka, who beams brightly towards her. The happy voices of Rin and Nico are mixed with the crowd and to the side both Umi and Nozomi are applauding with smiles on their faces. At the top of the stands Hanayo had finally reached her seat again, applauding with the crowd and Kotori, who looked excitedly into the ring.

"Congratulations, Maki." Eli says in a proud voice. "You've earned it."

"Thank you, Captain." Maki says, not hiding the happiness she felt. She makes her way off too the sidelines when Eli looks away from her to Hitomi and Honoka, then turning back to the crowd.

"Let us begin the second last match of today then! The battle between Akiba's Shiga Hitomi and Otonokizaka's Kousaka Honoka!" The crowd grows louder and Eli smiles towards Honoka and Hitomi.

"There are no time limits now." Eli says. "From this point, its whoever can last the longest against one another. Whichever one of you wins will go on to face Maki for the champions title." Honoka and Hitomi nod, turning to each other and locking gazes.

"Good luck to you both." She says with a smile, before exiting the ring. The crowd falls silent the moment Eli made it to the sides, and soon Hitomi and Honoka have shaken hands and drawn their swords to prepare themselves for the beginning of the match.

The match begins and both knights pause, waiting for the other to move. The silence is tense while the two simply observe each other. Honoka spares a quick glance to Kotori in the stands, who sits on the edge of her throne watching with an intense gaze. She quickly turns her gaze back to Hitomi and with a quick lick of her lips and tightened grip on her sword, Honoka strikes.

The movements between the two of them are quick and powerful, neither of them letting up or making a move to dodge each others swords. On the sidelines, Umi has her hands closed into tight fists, watching each movement between the girls carefully. Nozomi has her eyes closed in a silent prayer, willing all of her spiritual power to Honoka and Eli watches with an intensity that could rival Kotori's. The squad was silently willing for Honoka to get the advantage and face off with Maki in the final round.

In a brief moment, Honoka had it. She hit Hitomi's sword hard, causing the long haired captain to step back a few paces and try to compose herself from the hit. Honoka grins, taking the upper hand and aiming more hits at the faltering Akiba Captain. She swung with vigour, never once letting up and never letting Hitomi get a chance to strike back. As the ginger haired girl made another strike, a sharp pain shoots through her arm the moment her sword comes into contact with Hitomi's. She cringes, gripping her sword tighter and ignoring the pain. Hitomi catches it and quickly takes advantage, not hesitating to take the offensive from Honoka.

It soon becomes Honoka getting overwhelmed by Hitomi, Hitomi's strikes just as strong as hers had been before. With each hit more pain shot through Honoka's arm, and she bit her lip to keep from crying out. On the sidelines Umi watched worriedly, lowering her hands and whispering urgently.

"Somethings wrong. Honoka's in pain." She mumbles. Both Eli and Nozomi focus on Honoka's face, seeing Honoka wince with every hit Hitomi made.

"Elichi, should we step in?" Nozomi asks and Eli shakes her head.

"We can't. For all we know she could jut be having a hard time with the strength behind Hitomi's hits. We have to wait for Honoka to forfeit." Eli answers with a frown. Umi hums concerned.

"That won't happen. Not when she's this far in the match." She turns her gaze to Eli. "Eli, you have to step it!" She says with urgency.

It had all happened in the blink of an eye just after Umi said that. Honoka and Hitomi's swords clash against each others loudly, but the force behind Hitomi's hit had pushed her arm to its limit. Going unheard to everyone was the large crack that came from Honoka's arm, and her eyes widen as the pain increases tenfold. She gasps a bit, stepping backward and letting her grip loosen.

Just as Hitomi is about to pull back and strike again, Eli and Nozomi are there. Nozomi holding her sword out and blocking Hitomi's strike as Eli had gone straight to Honoka. Hitomi looked at her with a perplexed gaze before she drew her sword back. Nozomi stared at her with her own stern gaze, bringing her sword down to her side. The two stared at each other for a moment and Hitomi's eyes widened as she stared . Her lips formed a tight line before she looked away from the purple haired girl and sheathed her sword.

"Honoka! Are you alright?!" Eli asks, and at that moment her sword fell from her loose grip and clattered onto the ground. The moment the sword had reached the ground, Umi was there as well.

"Honoka!" She shouted, and the ginger haired girl falls to her knees.

In the stands Kotori sprang up onto her feet, looking down into the ring worriedly. Her hands were covering her mouth as her eyes began to water, not knowing what had happened or what was going on with her knights. Before she could move to leave the stands, Hanayo places a gentle hand on her arm. The two of them share a small gaze before looking back into the ring. Rin only looked on with a confused gaze, while both Nico and Maki stared at Hitomi, the anger in their eyes evident.

"U-Umi-chan," Honoka mumbles, wincing and gripping onto her arm. "I think I messed up."

"Honoka, what happened?" Eli asks quietly, and Honoka looks to her captain.

"During the fight my arm began hurting. Sharp pains every time I hit. But uhm-" she winces again as she holds onto her arm gently "It cracked just now."

Umi and Eli share a gaze before Umi puts her arm underneath Honoka's good side, lifting her up from her knees carefully. Honoka wanted to object and say that she could walk, but when pain pulsed through her broken arm she whimpered and all protests were lost.

"I'll get you to the medical tent." Umi says softly, looking to Eli. "Her arm is broken, theres no way she's going to be able to continue. I'll stay with her at the tent, you all carry on with the final match." Umi shoots a glance over to Hitomi, who looked at her and Honoka with light concern. Umi quickly turned away before her face went sour and began escorting Honoka out of the ring and towards the medical tent. As the two walked towards the exit, Honoka gripped her good hand tightly into Umi's tunic.

"I-I was so close Umi-chan." She mumbles in a heart broken voice. "I made it so far-"

"-And you did amazingly, Honoka." Umi whispers, passing by the knights and to the outside of the ring. "You won three of your matches and you held your ground against the Captain of Akiba's knights. That is something not many knights can say they did." Umi smiles towards Honoka softly, pausing just before the tent and turning to face her. She lifts her hand to wipe away the stray tears that fell from Honoka's eyes. "Don't beat yourself up over your loss. You were fantastic."

Honoka smiles lightly to her lover, tears falling as she leant forward and pressed her face into Umi's shoulder.

"Yeah. Yeah I was." She says through her tears. Umi carefully wraps her arms around Honoka in a short embrace before escorting her into the medical tent, where a medic sat waiting.

Eli had waited patiently until Umi and Honoka were out of the ring before speaking to the crowd.

"Due to a sudden injury, Kousaka Honoka has forfeited the match." She says in a serious voice. "The winner of this match is Shiga Hitomi."

The crowd is silent as they applaud Hitomi on her win. Eli looks over to Maki, gesturing for her to enter the ring again. Maki nods and steps forward, her gaze still fierce as she reached the three who still stood in the middle of the arena. She shares a look with Nozomi, nodding at her and then looking to Eli. Eli says nothing out loud, but her eyes look at her with a determined gaze. The two nod at each other, and Maki looks to Hitomi.

The black haired girl eyes her carefully, her hand resting on her sheathed sword. The two stare directly at one another before Hitomi hesitantly holds out her hand. Maki reaches out, grasping it firmly with her own and shaking it lightly. Eli and Nozomi make their way back to the sidelines and the two girls who stood at the center drew their swords. Maki's eyes stay locked on Hitomi's and she silently vows to win this match not only for herself, but for Honoka too.

Maki's friends in the crowd seemed to think so too, and before the match officially began Nico and Rin shout loudly.

"YOU CAN DO IT MAKI-CHAN!" Nico shouts with her hands cupped around her mouth to amplify the sound.

"FOR HONOKA-CHAN!" Rin copies Nico, her hands also around her mouth and both of them standing from their seats.

"D-DO YOUR BEST MAKI-CHAN!" Hanayo cries as loud as she can from where she stood, Kotori backing her up with her own cheer.

"GIVE IT YOUR ALL!"

Maki smiles slightly as she stares at Hitomi. She didn't intend to let them down.

The match soon began and the two of them don't hesitate to begin. Their moves are like lightning as they enter their own world filled with hits and blocks. Their attacks are strong, and by the ten minute mark both girls are sweating and gritting their teeth. Both of their swords hit one last time before Maki takes a couple steps back, beginning to circle Hitomi and catch her breath. Hitomi copies the red haired girls actions, her breathing coming out in small pants as she watched Maki.

Hitomi truly was great Captain material. She wasn't sweating nearly as much as Maki was, and her movements matched Maki's to a tee. If Maki kept the same movements going, their match wouldn't end until the other was completely fatigued and unable to continue. At this rate, that person would be Maki. She frowned as Hitomi moved to strike again. She needed to get the advantage and find a weakness or else the match was as good as lost.

Maki blocked with careful thought, thinking about ways to knock the sword out from Hitomi's hands. Her thoughts gave her nothing as hit after hit was made to her. She pushes back against a strike Hitomi made, pushing the other girls sword backwards and closer to her. It was in that moment Maki felt Hitomi's sword slide ever so slightly, and her purple eyes fell towards Hitomi's hands. They shook very lightly as she tried pushing back against Maki, and the redhead was hit with a sudden idea. She gave one last strong push against Hitomi's sword before stepping backward, putting space between them again. Hitomi looked at her with a confused stare before Maki charged, lifting her sword and glaring right at Hitomi. The black haired girls eyes widen and she lifts her sword, ready to defend the oncoming strike. Maki suddenly changes the direction of her sword, lowering it and going in with a lunge toward Hitomi. Hitomi gasps surprised, moving her sword quickly to block herself.

Hitomi's grip on her sword had lessened with the fast movement and everyone watches in awe as the sword falls from Hitomi's grasp. She reaches out desperately trying to grab its handle, only to knock it further away from her and causing it to land loudly on the ground. The audience is painfully quiet for a small moment until Rin and Nico cheer.

"SHE DID IT!" They both shout, and soon the whole audience is cheering in victory along with them. "MAKI-CHAN DID IT!" They hug each other in their excitement, their voices the loudest of them all.

Maki can feel the exhaustion from the match hit her and she drops her sword as well, quickly reaching up for her helmet and pulling it off of her head. The sound of the crowd grew louder and she can see both Eli and Nozomi making their way over to her, proud smiles on their faces.

"Great match, Nishikino-san." Maki looks over to Hitomi, who held her hand out. Maki nods lightly, taking hers and shaking it.

"Y-yeah. You too, Shiga-san."

Eli and Nozomi had reached them, and Eli holds her hands out for the crowd, waiting until they quieted down. Once they had, her smile grows as she announces her final announcement of the day.

"THE WINNER OF DAY TWO'S EVENTS IS NISHIKINO MAKI!" The crowd erupts into loud cheers all over again, and Eli's squad began moving from the stands and into the ring. Rin hops down from the wall excitedly, running over to them with a bound of energy. Nico wasn't far behind, stumbling when her legs hit the ground and she ran to keep a good pace with the short ginger haired girl. Hanayo had been excused by Kotori and walked down the steps with a speed she hadn't shown before. Kotori waited for her mothers permission before she stood and headed towards the medical tent, excited to see Honoka and Umi to tell them the good news.

Hitomi made her way from the ring to the sidelines as Maki is tackled by Rin, who yelps the moment Rin came into contact with her. Maki watches her with a sideways glance as her opponent from before met up with Hitomi and exited the arena. She turns back to her friends, who were now one person more with Hanayo finally reaching her. Off to the side many of the Otonokizaka knights that participated grinned and applauded, Fumiko shouting a congrats towards the red haired girl. She smiled genuinely, unsure how to react to all of the celebratory cheers.

"How are you feeling, Maki-chan?" Nico asks, as if being able to tell just how Maki was taking it all. The red head looks to Nico with a tired smile.

"Tired." She answers. "Very very tired." A few girls laugh and Rin lets go of her.

"You'll feel better when we eat dinner!" She declares. "Let's head back to the castle!"

"Good idea Rin." Eli says, and Rin beams to the captain. "We should head back and let the staff begin cleaning. They want to set up the jousting equipment as soon as possible so lets not make them wait any longer.

"I'll meet you all in the dining room then." Maki says, wiping some lingering sweat from her brow. "I'm in need of a quick bath and a change of clothes."

"You probably are. Your hair looks super greasy." Nico says, earning a nudge from Nozomi. The comment went ignored as Eli spoke.

"Sounds good. Come on everyone, lets head out then."

The group follows Eli out of the arena, waiting for remaining villagers who were leaving the stands to pass by them first. Once the crowd was gone, they continued outside and Maki's eyes caught sight of the medical tent. She eyes the entrance to it and can see the back of Umi's head as she talked with someone in the tent. She pauses, before looking to the group ahead of her.

"You guys go on ahead. I'll meet you all at the dining hall." No one questions this, deciding to continue to the castle as Maki turns and heads to the tent.

She pushes back the entrance, looking around at the mostly empty area. Her eyes land on the trio in front of her, Kotori's hand holding on to Honoka's good one and Umi sitting on a bed that was just in front of them. Honoka had been in the middle of a story and she paused, smiling over to Maki.

"Maki-chan!" She greeted with a smile. Kotori and Umi look over to her, smiling as well.

"We heard about your victory, Maki. Congratulations." Umi says with pride. "We knew you could do it."

"Thank you." Maki says, smiling slightly. She walks over to them, looking at Honoka's arm. "Hows your arm, Honoka?"

"Ehh, its been better. Stupid thing couldn't wait until after the event to break." She pouts a bit. "But you beat Akiba's captain! That's seriously amazing Maki-chan! I'm glad it was you who did it!"

Maki thanks Honoka again, looking to the ground awkwardly.

"Say Honoka," Maki begins, looking towards her. "I was looking forward to fighting you in that last round." Honoka's gaze softens a bit as she looks away from Maki. The small silence is tense before Maki continues.

"When your arm is better and you're back in top shape, I'd be honoured if you would spar with me." Maki bows her head a bit, surprising the trio of girls in front of her.

"Wha- really?!" Honoka exclaims, looking at Maki with wide eyes.

"I-I just said I would be!" Maki says a bit flustered and lifting her head. "If you don't want to its fi-"

"I'D LOVE TO!" Honoka shouts, standing quickly and being careful of her arm that rested in its sling. "I'D LOVE TO FIGHT YOU MAKI-CHAN!"

Maki smiles warmly at Honoka and her enthusiasm. The ginger haired girl had a complete mood swing, all lingering sadness of her match gone and replaced with the excitement of her arm healing up properly and being able to fight Maki.

"I'm glad to hear it." Maki replies. She's about to leave before Honoka calls out to her again.

"Hey hey, Maki-chan!" Maki look over with a questioning gaze and Honoka continues. "Do you think I would've been able to beat her if my arm didn't break?"

Maki gives it a small thought before nodding.

"Definitely."

* * *

The final day of the festival had finally arrived. Villagers had gathered into the arena for the final big event: the joust. The rules for the joust were basic and simple. The two beginning challengers would start their match and whoever was the winner would stay and compete against the next challenger. If the challenger knocked the current winner off of their horse, the challenger would become the new winner and the current winner would be out of the running. If not, the winner would stay and face the next challenger. With only half as many competitors in this event as the day before's, each match had gone by quite quickly.

The current winning knight was a long red haired girl by the name of Aikawa Ryo. She was quite the dashing girl, very polite and well spoken. She had come to speak to Eli during breakfast about the equipment with the horses, and Eli described talking to her like talking to a red haired Umi. Honoka and Rin were the only ones who laughed.

Nico's turn was almost upon her and she double checked to make sure that Kuro had every piece of gear needed on him. The horse armour was in place and secure, and he nickered a bit as she adjusted the long redish pink coat that had Otonokizaka's sigil on it. Nico wore a matching cover over her own armour, humming satisfied as it was straightened out and looking decent.

Nico hadn't been nervous until the third last challenger before her had stepped into the ring. She knew her own skills, she knew she'd do fine, but seeing Ryo knock down challenger after challenger wore away at her as she stood off to the side with Kuro patiently waiting for her name to be called by Eli. She held on tightly to Kuro's reins with one hand and her helmet in the other as she watched with anticipation. Her hair was tied in low twin tails that matched Nozomi's usual style, tucked away underneath her chest plate leaving it invisible to the crowd. She hummed with discontent as she watched the challenger get shoved ungracefully off their horse by Ryo's lance.

"She's gunna kick my ass." Nico mumbles to herself.

"Hm? Is Nicocchi doubting herself?" Nico leaps surprised, swerving and looking over to Nozomi, who stood next to her with a smile.

"Nozomi! What are you doing here?" She asks, raising an eyebrow. "I thought you were sitting in the stands today?"

"I was." Nozomi replies truthfully. "But someone noticed how you kept nervously watching every match and it gave us an idea."

Nico turns around to see the rest of the squad, Hanayo, and even the Princess had snuck down into the arena. Maki smiled softy at Nico.

"Did you think we wouldn't come to give you some good luck before your match?" She asks and Nico grins a bit, feeling some relief.

"Of course not! The great Nico Nii knows even if her friends don't say it, they're cheering her on." She says, nodding to herself. Nozomi laughs a bit.

"Right." She replies. "Well then, shall we wish her luck girls?" Nozomi asks everyone, making eye contact with Maki. Maki grins a bit to herself as Rin cheers.

"Lets do it!"

Nico is about to ask what they're going to do before all seven girls move in front of her. They all lift their hands up to the sides of their faces (aside from Honoka, who only lifted her good hand) with their middle and ring fingers closing on their palms and the others sticking out in Nico's signature pose. Her mouth falls open and before she can say anything, all of them cheer.

"Nico Nico Niiii~ Good luck Nicocchi~!"

All of the girls had adopted Nozomi's nickname to make the cheer rhyme properly and Nico's unable to form a coherent reply. She watches as each girl giggles lightly and smiles at her, aside from Umi and Maki who seemed to be unable to believe they had done such a thing. Her eyes begin to well with a bit of tears and she quickly wipes any that threatened to fall on her arm.

"G-geeze! You guys really need to work on your Nico Nico Nii!" She laughed, her eyes still watery as she smiled happily towards them all. Her eyes land on Maki, who looked shyly away with a small blush on her face. She grinned a bit more as she realized right away that it must have been Maki who noticed how nervous she had been.

"Thank you, everyone." She says earnestly. "I'll do my best! For all my fans~"

"Fans?! We're your comrades!" Rin objects and Nico laughs as she hands her helmet to Nozomi for her to hold.

"Well, that too." Nico adds, earning a laugh from Nozomi.

She quickly puts her foot in the stirrup of Kuro's saddle, climbing up onto him and looking down to her friends. Nozomi hands the helmet back to her and Nico takes it, carefully slipping it on and lifting the visor.

"Hey, can someone hand me my shield and lance?" She asks, and Umi glances to her side where the equipment rested.

"I'll get them." She says.

Umi walked over to where they rested, picking them up and walking over to Nico. She carefully handed the shield to Nico first, waiting until her shield was on properly before handing her the giant lance. Nico made sure her grip was tight on everything before turning towards her friends. She flashed them a quick grin and they all smiled back at her.

"Win it, Nico-chan." Maki said, giving her a final bit of good luck. Nico nods and before she can give a reply, her name is called out by Eli.

"Our second last challenger is Yazawa Nico! Please come forward!"

With a nervous gulp, Nico closes her visor an encourages Kuro to walk forward towards the starting point. The large black horse stepped towards the side Nico guided him too, looking nowhere but the space in front of him. Nico glanced up to the crowd where the Queen and King sat, noticing King Ren had been leaning forward in his seat. Her name definitely caught his attention, but there was no turning back now.

Nico peered out of her closed visor at Ryo, who's head was turned to her. Ryo's silver helmet was secure and her visor covered her gaze, but Nico could feel the intensity of her shorter girl stopped Kuro at the challengers spot, holding her lance upright and gripping her shield tightly. She let out a shaky breath in her helmet, nervous butterflies fluttering like crazy within her. If she won this round, she'd have her last round against Tatara Ru of Akiba, who Nico knew she could get an easy win from. Ru wasn't the most skilled when it came to using weapons while horseback riding. There was the possibility she improved in the time Nico had been gone, but she wasn't worried about that.

Eli gives both girls the signal and Ryo is the first to move, giving a loud shout as she encourages her horse to press forward. Nico is quick to follow, smacking her legs on Kuro's sides and kicking him off into a sprint. The two girls lowered their lances as their horses sprinted forward and Nico made sure to aim hers exactly where she wanted it: right above Ryo's shield. The distance between the two of them grew shorter and shorter and Nico held on tightly to her lance like her life depended on it. There's a loud metal screen as both lances scrape against one another as the knights pass by each other. Their horses continue forward and the two knights make sure their horses turn at the end of the dividing wall, not stopping them as they began to gallop down the other sides. Nico's eyes narrowed and she encouraged Kuro to move faster, adjusting her lance as they came closer to meeting Ryo again.

Their lances collide again and theres a tense gasp from the audience as Nico's lance slips and Ryo's is only millimetres from colliding with her. The black haired girl quickly moves her shield, blocking her opponents lance from hitting her. They pass by each other, both still strong on their horses and reaching their original starting points. They both stopped and took a small moment to pause and get themselves ready for their second round.

Once the two were ready they didn't hesitate and their horses began trotting forward, their trots quickly becoming speedy gallops. The two of them lowered their lances as the distance between them grew shorter yet again, and this time Nico's lance hit directly where she wanted it to. With a powerful shove, the lance collided with the top of Ryo's shield, causing her to wobble on top of her horse. Nico felt a spike of hope in her chest and she encouraged Kuro to move faster, wanting to get around to the other side of the wall and get that last hit in to knock Ryo straight to the ground.

Both of them rounded the corner swiftly and Nico aimed her lance slightly to the left, hoping it hit exactly the spot she was trying to reach. The audience is tense and to the sidelines, all of Eli's squad and princess Kotori lean forward in anticipation.

"She's almost got it!" Nozomi whispers excitedly, her green eyes intensely watching Nico moving forward in a blur.

In that moment Nico's lance collided directly with Ryo's chest plate and with a powerful shove, Ryo fell directly off the back of her horse. Her back slammed hard into the ground and the audience is in an uproar after seeing the knight who beat ten girls consecutively fall from her horse. Nico's heart is in her throat as she stops at the end of the divider, looking over to see Ryo pushing herself off the ground and taking off her helmet. She shakes her head and her long red hair flows beautifully behind her as she looks directly over to Nico, smiling lightly before grabbing her equipment and making her way to the sidelines.

"SHE DID IT! SHE WON! NICO BEAT HER!" Rin is bouncing in her spot and Maki's eyes are watching Ryo carefully as she makes her way to the sides. She saw the smile she gave Nico and an unsettling feeling crept its way into her. Whether it was because Ryo knew that it was Nico or because of Maki's giant crush on the black haired, she really wasn't sure.

"But she hasn't won yet. She has one more challenger." Umi pointed out, watching as Eli announced for the final knight to make their way to the challengers position.

Nico avoided glancing away from Ru to her friends, wanting to keep her focus on the final joust. She held her lance upward as the her final opponent got into position at the other end. Through Ru's horses armour Nico could tell that it was completely white in colour. It amused her that the final match would be between two completely opposite horses; one as white as snow and the other as black as night.

The two wait patiently before Eli gives the starting signal for the final time. With a light kick to Kuro's sides they began moving forward, Kuro's pace increasing quickly. Nico was determined to end this round in one shot and so when the time to lower her lance came, she aimed directly past Ru's own lance. Nico licked her lips and before long her lance came into direct contact with Ru, hitting her right underneath her arm. Ru cried out in surprise and before she could react, Nico had given the sword one push and Ru was thrown off balance and falling right to the ground.

After Ru's ungraceful landing, the crowd erupts into another loud cheer and Nico can feel her heartbeat in her throat. She won. Nico had successfully won the jousting event. It hit her like a smack to the face and before she could even lead Kuro to the side lines, she was scrambling down from her horse, dropping her weapons and throwing her helmet off. Eli didn't hide her proud smile as she turned to the audience and announced loudly.

"Yazawa Nico is the new jousting champion!" The crowd cheers again and Nico looks over to them, her eyes watering and an excited smile on her face as the whole arena cheered for her.

"NICOCCHI!" At the sound of a voice Nico whips her head around and before she can even react, A body comes into contact with her and causes her to stumble. Nico can barely register who it is until she notices the familiar purple hair and she laughs, winding her arms around Nozomi and hugging her back tightly.

"You did it Nicocchi." Nozomi whispers in her ears, and Nico only nods.

"I did! I won!" She says in a laugh before her voice softens into a small, sad whisper. "I just wish they could have seen it too."

Nozomi hugs Nico tighter, enjoying the embrace. After the small moment between them Nico pulls away and flashes a grin to all her friends that stood there.

"Looks like I'm the champion of jousting in Otonokizaka AND Akiba!" She declares with pride, closing her eyes and smiling smugly. There are a few laughs from the small group before Honoka shouts excitedly.

"I'm all pumped up! Nico-chan! Teach me how to joust!" She looks at the shorter girl with fire in her eyes and Nico's smug smiled grows.

"Alright! The great Nico Nii will happily teach her fans how to joust. Let's start the lesson right now! Honoka, grab my lance!"

Before the ginger haired girl could even move, both Umi and Kotori had grabbed parts of her tunic. Maki walked over to Nico and brought her fist down lightly on top of her head. Nico let out a surprised "Nico!" at the contact. She eyed Maki warily and Maki looked flatly at her.

"Not so fast Nico-chan." She gestures to her dropped equipment. "You need to grab your equipment first." Despite the strict tone of her voice, Maki's expression is bright and happy. Nico pouts lightly but reluctantly does, gathering her lance and the fallen helmet. Hanayo offers to take Kuro back to the stable and help get his armour off and Nico happily takes the offer, not wanting to do it by herself.

Eli soon comes over, congratulating Nico on her win and looking to her squad with a smile.

"I hate to break up the good time, but we all need to pitch in and help get the citizens back to town and clean up the arena. Umi, you and Rin will be in charge of clean up. Nozomi and I will see the citizens out of the castle, and Maki, you go with Nico and help get her weapons and armour put away, then both of you will come back and help Umi and Rin with whatever is left."

"Yes Captain!" the girls chorus, and everyone sets out to work. Hanayo, Nico and Maki headed towards the stables to get Kuro back in his stall and free of his armour, Umi and Rin began planning out how they would start their cleaning and Nozomi and Eli headed towards the exit and towards the crowds, helping out any villager who seeked it.

By the time everyone was finished, the Queen had begun her closing ceremonies and they all patiently listened to her speech about how it was a very successful festival, how the events kept surprising her and what an amazing show it was to see all the knights compete. She mentioned how she was grateful there was only one major injury occurred and that over all everything was a wonderful experience for the villagers and knights. She said her own special congratulations to Umi, Maki and Nico, the winners of each event that took place. The whole courtroom applauded for them with the Queen and Nico spared a glance to Maki, who had glanced at her as well. The two of them share a small smile before turning their attention back to the Queen again. She declared that the festival was officially over and asked that everyone made their way to the dinning hall for a final celebratory meal..

With the speech concluded, everyone headed to the dinning hall for the feast. The castle staff had prepared each table during the Queen's speech, and as a treat the Queen allowed Kotori to spend the meal at the Captain's table with her friends. All nine girls sat around it, laughing and smiling and going over the last three days of events. There were a few bottles of wine that a few girls happily indulged in, and with a small laugh Nico held up her glass.

"I say we all have a toast!" She declares, her face lightly flushed from the alcohol. She sat between Maki and Nozomi, grinning excitedly as she looked between everyone.

"First, to me! Because I'm amaz- AH!" Before she could finish her sentence Maki had bopped her fist on top of Nico's head again.

"If you're going to start a toast, you need to start it right." Maki scolds, holding up her cup. "First you'll toast to me because I'm your- AH! NICO LET GO!" Maki's joking line is cut off by Nico grabbing her cheeks and pulling them lightly. Nozomi laughs, shaking her head.

"Elichi, the children seem to be arguing again." Nozomi says with a playful hint to her voice. Eli glances over to Nico and Maki and sighs.

"Of course they are." She says with a hint of amusement. "The two of you need to quit your bickering, or you'll both receive a punishment you won't forget from Nozomi." To emphasize Eli's point, Nozomi smirked and lifted her hands. Nico and Maki both freeze in their actions before pulling away from each other and apologizing. The rest of the table laughs loudly at how quick they were to stop.

"Okay okay. But seriously, I wanna do a real toast." Nico says again. "To everything I guess. But mostly to you guys, because seeing you all Nico Nico Nii was priceless and I'll never forget it." She has a slight smirk on her face before a roll thrown by Rin hits her directly on her forehead. She shouts in protest, grabbing the roll and throwing it back at her. Umi reaches out and catches it, stopping the two of them from starting an unnecessary food war.

"Hey, wait a second. Not all of us here did that!" Honoka brings up, her eyes falling to Eli. Nozomi catches on and she glances to the side, a smirk on her face.

"That's true. Elichi was busy, so she never got to wish Nicocchi good luck like we did." Eli can feel more eyes fall to her and a small bead of sweat rolls down her face.

"Yes, well that kind of thing does happen." She says with a bit of nervousness. She watched them do the embarrassing gesture from the corner of her eye earlier and if she could prevent herself from doing it, than she intended to.

"Hmm, does everyone else think Elicchi should do it too?" She asks teasingly and both Rin and Honoka nod vigorously.

"Absolutely!" Rin says immediately. "The Captain would probably look great doing it, don't you think Kayo-chin?" Hanayo nods a bit, a small smile on her face.

"I think so too Rin-chan." She says in a soft voice.

"The Captain should definitely do it, right Nico-chan?!" Honoka asks Nico excitedly, who nods in agreement.

"Of course! Come on Captain! Give us all your best Nico Nico Nii~" She grins mischievously at Eli, who can't even find the right word to object. She looks to Umi and Maki for some assistance and only find that both of them have looked away, not daring to face her.

'Traitors...' She thinks to herself.

"Eli-chan," Kotori's eyes are watery and Eli looks over to her, watching her grip her chest and look at her pleadingly. "Please! For all of us!"

Eli's jaw falls open as she looks away, quickly closing it and covering her mouth. She looks bewildered at everyone, removing her hand and a small frown being in its place.

"You can't all be serious. I'm not going to do it." She says sternly. Nico and Nozomi share a look before Nico points at Eli.

"The Captain's refusing to cooperate even after the princesses pleas! The only salvation we have is Nozomi's punishment!" Nico declares, and Nozomi smirks as she lifts her hands up. Eli's breath hitches and she turns to the side facing Nozomi, lifting her hands in defence.

"Alright alright! Okay! I'll do it! I'll do it!" The captain caves from the threat and eight gazes are on her, anticipating the big moment. Nozomi's hands stay up just in case the blonde tired to back down.

The blonde closes her eyes, her eyebrows twitching before she lifts her hands in Nico's signature pose. Her features soon become a smile.

"N-Nico Nico Nii!" She chants in a slightly higher pitched voice.

There's a brief pause before Honoka, Rin and Nico's loud laughs echo throughout the entire dinning room. Eli's face brightens a nice dark shade of red while Umi and Maki look at her sympathetically. Hanayo and Kotori quietly giggle to themselves and Nozomi pats Eli's back lightly, doing her best to stifle any giggles of her own. The blonde puts her face in her hands while Nico goes on about it being a very victorious day through her laughs.

"I can't believe I did that." Eli groans into her hands. "This is going to be held against me for the rest of my life." Nozomi hums in agreement, pulling her hand off of Eli's back and leaning close to her.

"Maybe it will, but look how happy it made Nicocchi." She whispers into her ear, and Eli peaks out from her hands and peers across the table.

Nico was still laughing and holding her sides as she leant against Maki, tiny tear dots at the edges of her eyes as her laughter rang loudly around them. Maki looked away with a small smile, enjoying the happiness that was being spread from her loud partner. Eli took a moment to glance at everyone else, taking note of their happy smiles and the merriment they all were enjoying. The blonde sat up a bit, bringing her hands off of her face and looking to Nozomi. The two of them shared a small smile before looking over to the rest of the girls, both of them leaning against each other and enjoying the blissful moment.

"Ah, pardon my interruption," A voice calls, and Eli looks over to see one of the guards. Her black hair was tied in a high ponytail and she stood straighter once she had the Captain's attention. Eli quickly recognized her as one of the girls from the joust earlier that day.

"What can I do for you, Hyodo-san?" Eli says, pulling away from Nozomi and turning to face her.

"The Queen requests your assistance. She and the Akiba King want to talk in private and she would like you be present." Eli hums a bit, before standing up.

"Of course. Thank you, Hyodo-san." The other knight nods, taking this as her moment to excuse herself. Eli glances over to her friends and smiles apologetically to them.

"I'll be back soon." She promises, leaving the table and heading over to where the Queen waited. Next to her was Ren and Hitomi, the knight who had lost to Maki the day before. Eli nodded to her before leading the trio out of the dinning room and towards the Queens study.

Once they had arrived, Eli shuts the door behind the small group and takes a spot next to the Queen's desk. She looks over to Hitomi and Ren with mild curiosity, clasping her hands in front of her and waiting for someone to begin speaking. It was in this time Eli took a good look at the king who stood before her. His round stomach and bushy beard were the most eye catching things, but upon closer inspection Eli would have never noticed his bald spot or how sunken in his eyes were. He was clearly displeased as he cleared his throat.

"Your Grace, there was something that happened today that had me very... concerned." Ren begins, staring at the Queen. "More specifically, there was a knight who caught my attention. A knight who just so happens to meet the _exact_ description of a wanted criminal in my kingdom."

"Oh?" Queen Minami quirks her eyebrow at Ren. "And which knight of mine would that be?"

"Oh please, spare me the act." The anger in Ren's tone is evident as his eyes narrow at the Queen. "You know who I'm talking about."

Eli eyes him warily. Hitomi steps to him about to speak, but he holds his hand out to her to silence her. She steps back, closing her mouth and looking down. Ren's eyes glare dangerously at the royal who sat in front of him.

"Do you take me for an idiot your majesty?! Do you think that I'm not aware of the relationship you had with the previous King and Queen!?"

"What of it, Ren?" The Queen drops all formalities, her voice low and serious.

"You're hiding the Tojo girl." He accuses. "If that fugitive Yazawa is here, than I'm almost certain she brought along that criminal Tojo as well. Both of them are merciless murderers, and you've been hiding them all this time!" His voice is practically a shout and Eli's cautious gaze became a furious glare. She waits rather impatiently for the Queen to continue.

"Whatever quarrels you are having with your kingdom is your own business, Ren." She says calmly. "Otonokizaka will not become apart of the affairs that go on within your kingdom. I refuse to get my knights involved without being provided proper evidence and at least one witness who can confirm that these people you claim as murderers are indeed as you say they are."

"I KNEW IT! SHE HAS MANIPULATED YOU! DON'T YOU SEE SHE WILL BRING YOU DOWN AS WELL!?" Ren roars, stepping forward. Eli swiftly steps between him and where the Queen sat, her eyes glaring daggers towards the man. Ren's eyes widen from the intimidating glare and he takes a step back to put space between him and Eli.

"Permission to speak, your majesty?" Eli asks venomously glancing back to her. The Queen nods, granting Eli's request.

"The Queen has stated her thoughts on this matter, your grace. Allow me to repeat it so you understand it better." She says in a voice so cold she could have sworn she saw the King shiver. Her glare hardens as she repeated what the Queen had said. "It is not Otonokizaka's issue. If these people you suspect as criminals truly are, the Queen will only grant your request if you provide her with evidence and a witness to back up your claims."

Ren had backed up another step from Eli, who's glare only darkened with each word she said. The room became tense and Hitomi could only stand to the side, unsure of is she should step in and interfere or wait until the discussion was over. Remembering her King has silenced her made her hesitant to interfere, and so she chose to wait until all was said and done.

"Are the Queen's terms clear, your grace? Or shall I repeat them for you again?" Eli concluded, still staring Ren down. At the last sentence uttered from her lips, Ren's anger flashed over his features and he stood straighter, looking past Eli to the Queen.

"This won't be the last you hear of this." He seethed, then made direct eye contact with Eli. "And you would do well to respect your guest royals. I'm not somebody you want to piss off."

Eli's glare doesn't waver as she takes a step towards him, staring into his beady eyes.

"I don't take kindly to guests threatening my Queen and her kingdom." She said in her icy voice. "Royals or not, it is a crime that I do not forgive anybody who dares to do it."

Hitomi finally breaks and steps between Eli and Ren, only staring at Eli with calm eyes. She turns her face to the side and whispers to Ren.

"There isn't a lot more we can do, your majesty." She mumbles, and Ren stays quiet before turning away from them all, heading towards the door. The Queen calls out to him as he grasps the door handle.

"Before you leave, I have a request for you." her voice is calm as she uses the formalities again. Ren looks over to her from the spot he stood, waiting for her to continue. "I would like you and your knights to be out of my castle first thing tomorrow morning. Captain Ayase will be present to make sure that happens."

Ren grits his teeth before opening the door, exiting the room furiously. Hitomi turns her attention to both Eli and the Queen, giving a small bow and speaking in an apologetic tone.

"On behalf of the Akiba knights, I apologize for the King's behaviour." She begins, lifting her head and looking at the Queen directly. "Akiba has been distressed for the last few months, we hoped this festival would be a nice vacation for him but it looks like it didn't last too long. We are deeply sorry for the way he has treated you and your knights." the Queen smiles warmly at her, and Hitomi's expression relaxes.

"Your apology is humbly accepted, Shiga-san. May your journey home be safe." The Queen says in a far nicer tone than she had with Ren. Hitomi gives a small smile before she exits the room and follows the Akiba King.

"Captain." Eli looks to the Queen, her stern gaze still in Queen continues once Eli's attention is on her.

"What are your thoughts on what the Akiba ruler has said tonight?" Eli didn't hesitate with her reply.

"Garbage." She began, before clearing her throat. "It's absolute garbage your majesty."

The Queens eyes widen and an amused smile is on her features while Eli elaborates more.

"I'm not saying this just because Nozomi and Nico are my friends, your majesty. That is part of the reason, and I'm not ashamed to admit that. It was the way he treated you and accused you of being manipulated that pushed me to step in. I apologize if I seemed rather informal, but I will not allow you to be talked to that way by anyone."

The Queen's smile is still on her face as she listens to Eli speak, and she leans forward in her chair as she looks at Eli.

"So you trust your wife and subordinate with your life that they are no threat to our kingdom?" She asks, and Eli's eyes meet hers. With a curt nod, Eli responds.

"Of course. Nico has already saved my life once, and I wouldn't hesitate to put my faith in her during another battle." she pauses, her eyes softening. "And I would trust Nozomi with all of me. She has saved me in ways she may never know."

Eli's reminded of the meetings she had with Umi and Maki. The secret speculations they made amongst one another and the things they had been trying to learn in secret to determine the true reason for Nozomi and Nico being there. Eli knew now what brought the both of them, but with her promise to Nozomi she couldn't allow the other two to know. It was a secret she planned to take with her to the grave. Leaving Umi and Maki out of the loop wasn't good but Eli didn't break promises with anyone- she was a woman who was true to her word. Maki and Umi seemed to enjoy Nozomi and Nico as members of the squad, maybe in time the two of them would think nothing of it and drop all suspicions of them. The captain at least hoped it worked out that way.

The Queen leans back in her chair, taking in Eli's response. She stands, her smile softening as she approaches Eli. She puts a hand on her shoulder, her kind eyes smiling as she looked at the captain.

"Then I trust in you and your squad to resolve anything Ren will try to do to the castle and the kingdom." Eli nods at being entrusted with the task.

"Of course, your majesty."

The Queen steps away from her, heading towards the door as well. Eli follows her, knowing she's been excused from any further duties for the night. The Queen looks to her and speaks again, her voice low.

"One last thing, Captain." Eli's ears are alert as she waits for the Queen to continue speaking.

"Everything you heard in this room tonight stays in this room. If anyone asks, it is all confidential and you are not to speak of the things Ren said."

"Yes, your majesty." Eli bows her head, agreeing to the Queens terms. The Queen gives her one last smile before exiting the room, and Eli follows.

The two enter the dining room, everyone still as lively as ever and spending the last night of the festival in good spirits. The Queen takes her seat again at her table, and Eli excuses herself and heads back to her own. As she approaches, Honoka sees her and announces that she had returned. The heads of everyone sitting here turn to her, bright grins and smiling eyes on their faces as they chorus a "Welcome back Captain!" to her. Eli pushes all thoughts from the discussion with King Ren to the back of her mind as she takes her seat again and listens to Rin declare that they should all sing a song. Honoka agrees with enthusiasm and the two decide on a song the whole squad was bound to know considering the two ginger haired girls had been singing it the last couple of days.

As her and Honoka begin to sing, Eli feels warm fingers intertwine with hers underneath the table and a small smile graces her features as Nozomi's head finds its way back to her shoulder. One by one everyones voices began to join in Honoka and Rin's song, and Eli closes her eyes at the sound of their tune. The comforting touch from Nozomi and happy atmosphere was all Eli needed as she leant her head on top of Nozomi's, their voices finally joining the rest as they finished the song that celebrated the success of an amazing festival.


	10. Akiba's Declaration

AN: Hello everyone! Chapter 9 is here! If you haven't already, I highly suggest reading the latest chapter of OCSS before reading this one! I don't have a lot to say in the notes this time, and I hope you all enjoy this update c:. As I've said on my blog, the following chapter is completed however I plan to wait a few days before uploading it. Thank you for all the reviews and views!

* * *

"It's HOT" Rin whines loudly to the group of knights at the breakfast table. There's a small murmur of agreement from Nico and Honoka and they watch as she sluggishly sits down on her stool.

July arrived and with it, the beginning of an incredible heat wave. Windows were opened and the castle was kept as cool as possible during the unbearable heat. Knights who worked outside during the day were given plenty of water and shaded areas for them to stand under for breaks were set up all around the castle outdoors. Castle staff made sure to wear more summer appropriate uniforms and the Queen had announced that the staff was allowed to take breaks when needed and not to overwork themselves.

"Kayo-chin, you're not working in the stables this morning are you?" Rin asks her friend, turning to the girl who had been munching on her rice.

"Not today Rin-chan." She says with a small smile. "The Princess told me if I have any stable duties to leave them until before dinner. But the other staff members have told me not to worry about it and to take care of the Princess." Rin nods, pleased with the answer Hanayo gave her.

"Good!" she declares with a smile. "You can overheat easily and I wouldn't want you passing out in the stable."

"Thank you for thinking of me, Rin-chan." Hanayo smiles to her friend before continuing to eat her breakfast. "What about you Rin-chan? What are your plans today?"

"Nothing but work." She says with a small grin.

"Don't forget to drink a lot of water then." Hanayo reminds her friend. "It's important to stay hydrated on hot days like today."

"I will!" Rin assures as she begins placing food onto the empty plate in front of her.

The small group ate in almost complete silence, occasional chatter coming from Honoka, Rin and Hanayo. Eli had been completely silent as she ate, going over a report she had missed the night before. The rest of the girls were fairly quiet as they ate their meals and listened to the food talk between the only three girls speaking. Once Eli was finished reading, she placed the parchment down and looked to her table of friends.

"Today will be an easy day." Eli says to the group, getting their attention. "Honoka, Umi, you both have been given the day off by request of the Princess." Honoka grins towards Umi and the amber eyed girl nods to Eli.

"Thank you Captain." Umi says with her own small smile. "The Princess has been wanting the three of us to visit Honoka's family since the festival ended. They know of her arm but they haven't seen her and we know they might be worried."

"Understandable." Eli replies. "In that case since you'll be off duty, Nozomi and I will be your escorts to make sure everything goes smoothly and that nobody tries to steal the carriage."

"What about your duties here?" Umi asks, her eyebrows raising in curiosity. Eli's gaze falls to Maki as she placed her fork down, finished with her breakfast.

"I think Maki can handle it."

Maki looks up from her empty plate with a shocked expression. She blinked in confusion, unsure if she heard the words right as she looked at the blonde.

"Did you just say you wanted me to be the stand in Captain?" She asks. This catches Nico's attention and she sits up more alert and paying attention to the conversation.

"That's right." Eli confirms, smiling. "Umi's off today and the Princess will be having an outing, so it's only fit that you take up my duties while we're gone."

Maki was left spacing out and staring at nothing in particular until Nico nudged her playfully, bringing her out of her trance.

"Way to go Maki!" Nico grinned. "You've finally got the title of stand in Captain! You know what that means?"

Maki contemplates what the answer might be and she shrugs to her red eyed partner.

"More responsibilities?" She says questioningly.

"Well, obviously that. But it also means that I get to be your right hand knight!" She sits straighter, a smug smirk on her face as she boasts. Maki rolls her eyes.

"If that's the case then I'll make you in charge of all my regular duties today. Rin, You'll be in charge of making sure Nico visits every single post to gather the daily reports."

Nico's eyes narrowed as Nozomi laughed in the background.

"Maki-chan's a cruel Captain." She mumbles

"I think she's off to a great start." Nozomi says with a playful grin.

"She'll be of to a better start once we're out of the castle." Eli adds, standing from her seat. "Umi, Nozomi and I will take care of getting the carriage ready. We'll meet you, Honoka and the Princess in the front courtyard."

"Alright Captain." Umi responds.

Nozomi stands up from her chair, saying a short good bye to the girls at the table. She offers Eli a small smile that the blonde returns before they both head towards the exit . They walked side by side and the remaining girls watch as Nozomi links her arm with Eli's and the two of them walk out of sight. Hanayo can't help but smile to herself at the scene.

"Do you ever feel yourself become happy just by watching someone else when they're happy?" She asks quietly to her friends. Maki subtly glances to Nico -who had also been watching with a fond smile of her own-. She blushes a bit as she stands and answers Hanayo's question.

"Sometimes. I think it's only natural to feel happy when you see the people you care about happy too." She answers Hanayo's question with her smile still on her face. "Come on Nico-chan, we better get to work as well."

"Got it, Captain~" Nico said teasingly, earning a heavier blush from Maki. Nico laughed as Maki began to walk away before she could become more flustered.

Honoka and Umi were the next to leave, heading over to the Princess and the Queen's table to see if Kotori was finished with her meal. This left only Hanayo and Rin at the table, and the two of them didn't take long to finish up their food and deciding to go about their daily duties.

Kotori, Umi and Honoka spent a short amount of time getting themselves prepared and they were soon heading out to the front courtyard. When the castle doors opened they were greeted by the fancy carriage being parked right at the foot of the steps. Eli sat on the drivers bench with the reins in her hands while Nozomi stepped up to the carriage door, opening it up and grinning to the group of girls.

"Great timing, Princess." the violet haired girl says. "Your carriage is ready!"

"Thank you, Nozomi-chan! Thank you Captain!" Kotori says happily, looking to Honoka and Umi. "Umi-chan, will you be sitting inside with Honoka-chan and I?"

"Maybe on the ride back." Umi smiles to Kotori. "I'll ride with the Captain at the front for now."

"Looks like Nozomi-chan will be joining us inside the carriage then!" Honoka says with a grin, making her way down the steps to the carriage. "Is that alright, Captain?"

"Sounds good to me." Eli answers with a smile. "Are there any stops we need to make before we go to Honoka's?"

"Nope! But I would like to go for a ride through town before we stop at Honoka-chan's house." Kotori says with a smile before climbing into the carriage.

Honoka followed after her and Nozomi watched Umi make her way to the front, placing her foot on the step and boosting her up into the spot next to Eli. The green eyed girl stepped in next, sitting on the opposite side of Honoka and Kotori and shutting the door behind her. It closed with a small click and Nozomi opened the window and poked her head outside of it.

"We're ready to go, Elichi!" She announces.

Eli gives a quick flick of her wrists, the reins smacking the horses and encouraging them to move forward. With an awkward jolt, the carriage began to move. Eli steered the horses around towards the gates as they creaked open slowly to allow the carriage to exit. Eli and Umi wave up to Mika who beamed down at them in return, giving them a goodbye wave as they carriage moved out of the castle grounds and into town.

The ride is smooth and Eli and Umi are quiet as they listen to the muffled sounds of conversation from behind them. Occasionally the three of them would laugh at something one of them had said, and both Umi and Eli would smile to themselves. When their conversations continued, Umi decided to strike up a small conversation between her and Eli regarding a request Eli had before the festival.

"This might be a bit late, but I figured you may like to know anyway." The blue haired girl begins. "I dug through everything I could and even talked to the Queen, but I really didn't find out much about A-Rise."

Eli isn't that surprised and she shrugs a bit as she sighs.

"That's alright. After day two's incident I didn't expect you'd be able to dig up much." She confesses to Umi. Her lips purse as she begins to think more. "Were you able to find out anything at all?"

"Not a single thing we didn't already know." Umi says, shaking her head. "One Akiba knight mused that it would be interesting if they were there to participate, but that was the only thing I really heard."

Eli only nods as she keeps her gaze on the road before them. When a loud bout of laughter comes from the carriage Eli smiles, leaning back a bit and glancing to Umi.

"I think it's fine." She decides. "While I'm thinking about it, there is something that I wanted to ask you."

Umi's attention falls on Eli as she adjusts her hold on the reins a bit.

"It's been a while since they've arrived. I've learnt just about everything that Nozomi has been willing to share with me." She says quietly. "No matter how long I think about it or how much time goes by, I can't detect a single sign of a threat or malicious intent from her. I can't say much for Nico, but I know if we were to ask Maki what she thought, her answer might be the exact same.

The two of them are silent as Umi processes everything, thinking about every moment she had talked or worked with Nico and Nozomi.

"I've been thinking the same thing." Umi says slowly. "They may have secrets that we don't know anything of, but there is nothing wrong with that. We all have our own secrets. Maybe the reason they're here truly is because of whatever was going on between Akiba and Otonokizaka."

"I'm beginning to think the same thing too." There's a small smile on Eli's face as she lets her mind wander to Nozomi and Nico and the things that have gone on while they had been around. Castle life truly was different and Eli couldn't picture how her squad was before the two of them had arrived. She could remember how they were and how days went but the more she thought about her squad without the two of them, the more abnormal it seemed.

"I know I've said this before Captain, but you truly have changed." Umi suddenly says, pulling Eli from her thoughts. Eli looks to her, quirking an eyebrow at her before she glanced back to the road.

"Have I really?" She asked curiously.

"Yes, you have." Umi confirms with a smile. "You seem to be a lot happier whenever Nozomi is around. When she greets you, your eyes light up and you don't hide how happy you are to see her either."

"Are you always this observant of me, Umi?" Eli asks in a playful tone while a small blush dusts her cheeks.

"Not always." Umi muses, her own smile growing. "Hanayo mentioned that sometimes she feels herself getting happy when she sees others happy. It made me curious, since she brought it up just after after you and Nozomi left the breakfast table. I began to reflect on each moment I had seen you and Nozomi happy together and I couldn't help but smile as well. In all the time I've served as your right hand knight, I don't think I've ever seen you this happy."

Eli can feel her cheeks heat up more as she look back to Umi. "I've been happy!"

"Yes yes, but you show it a lot more now." Umi smiles a bit more as she leans back. "Honoka and Rin find it a lot easier to approach you with things not work related. Before they would always bug me to tell you thing themselves unless I was busy. Now they don't care if they have to go directly to you about anything at all."

"Well, that's probably thanks to Nozomi." Eli says, pondering it a bit more.

The more Eli thought about the moments she had with Nozomi, the happier she got. Every day she woke up next to her best friend. They discussed everything they wanted to do for the day during their morning routines, they were able to talk about things to each other with open minds, and Eli was always impressed by the improvement Nozomi showed each time they got a chance to train together. When Nozomi and Eli weren't together, Eli always found her thoughts going back to hoping Nozomi was doing well with her daily jobs and -just like Umi had pointed out- she always felt immense happiness the moment Nozomi returned.

"You know," Eli starts speaking in a thoughtful voice. "I never thought that I would be this close with anyone before."

Umi only looks at her Captain, silently waiting for her to elaborate.

"When I wake up, she's always there. Sometimes she's still asleep and her breathing is always soft and quiet. But there are times when she's awake she always has this smile and- I can't really explain it but every time I see it I feel like everything is right. Everything is the way it should be. Nothing can go wrong when she's smiling so sincerely at me." Umi can only watch fondly as Eli continued to speak, no flustered or embarrassing blushes creeping onto her face.

"Whenever I'm in a rush she always makes sure to stop me at the door to fix up my uniform, then she assists me while I get my armour on. She always makes sure that I have everything and she always runs down the days jobs with me before we leave for breakfast or morning patrol." Eli's smile is soft and her gaze loving as she voices her thoughts.

"And at the end of the day, after she's returned from her free time in the garden and we've finished going over all the reports together, we like to talk. We don't really talk about anything in particular, it's always a different kind of conversation. Sometimes its pleasant and other times it's not, but it's still nice. Whenever I think about this, I find myself thinking about how my life was before she arrived. Before when it was always just me spending time alone, training alone and getting everything done by myself at a lengthy pace."

Umi's smile matches Eli's as she watches the blonde pause, taking in everything she had said out loud. Eli lets out a small embarrassed laugh as she lifts one of her hands to brush some strands of hair from her face.

"I really can't imagine my life without her there by my side." She confesses, speaking loud enough for only her and Umi to hear. "Becoming the Captain and becoming friends with Nozomi may be the best things that have ever happened to me."

Umi's smile becomes proud as she watches her superior confide all of this to her. She turns her gaze to the road ahead, watching as Eli leads the horses down a new road. The two of them are quiet only for a moment before Umi breaks the silence.

"You should tell her." She says with confidence. "It's quite possible that Nozomi feels the same way about you."

Eli's face heats up a bit more as she laughs, shaking her head.

"Maybe." the blonde muses. "Maybe the moment I do that, Maki will admit she has stronger feelings than friendship towards Nico."

As the two of them begin to laugh, the small window behind them slides open at a fast pace and startles the both of them.

"Captain! You never told me Nozomi-chan could read fortunes!" Honoka's voice announces. Eli glances behind her with a baffled expression.

"Honoka, I didn't even know you knew what tarot readings were."

Kotori's laughter can be heard while Honoka pouts.

"Well I do now! It's really incredible! Umi-chan, you should let Nozomi do one for you. She just did one for Kotori-chan and I and they were really really good!" the gingered hair girl replies, gazing over to Umi.

"I'll have to pass for now." Umi says, both Honoka and Kotori voicing their disappointment with tiny 'aww's.

"But Umi-chan, they're really neat! You could find out how your day might go or if good things might be coming your way!" Honoka tries to persuade the navy haired girl, who stubbornly shakes her head in disagreement.

"I don't need a tarot reading to answer those questions. As long as I'm with you two. I know there will be plenty of good things and if my day doesn't go well, at least I got to spend it with the both of you." Umi pauses, her eyes widening as she realized Eli and Nozomi had both heard her say that out loud. Her face quickly turns a bright shade of red and both Honoka and Kotori giggle to each other.

"Umi-channn~! You're so cute!" Kotori chants, putting both of her hands on her now heated cheeks. "Captain! Stop the carriage so I can hug Umi-chan!"

When Eli actually does bring the carriage to a stop, Kotori and Honoka look surprised out the tiny window.

"Eh?! Did the Captain actually stop?!" Honoka asks bewildered.

"C-Captain, you didn't actually have to stop! I can hug Umi later!" Kotori says with an awkward laugh.

"Yes, I know that Princess." Eli says, turning around in her seat. "But we've reached the Homura bakery. Your final destination."

Both Kotori and Honoka face each other before looking outside and sure enough, the carriage had been stopped directly in front of the bakery. Nozomi slides her cards back into her pocket before opening the door, stepping outside and keeping it held open for Kotori and Honoka. Umi climbs down from the front, walking over to the side and holding her hand out for Kotori to take as she exits the carriage. Once shes out, the taller girl holds her own hand out for Honoka's and the ginger haired girl laughs as she takes it.

"Thank you Kotori-chan! Umi-chan!" she smiles to the both of them before looking at Nozomi. "And Nozomi-chan and Eli-chan! Thanks!"

Nozomi only beams as she shuts the door to the carriage.

"Not a problem Honoka-chan. Have fun seeing your family~" She replies with a warm smile.

Honoka returns it with one of her own before the trio walk over to the entrance of the bakery. Umi opens the door and the sound of a bell jingling goes off. Both Nozomi and Eli watch fondly as the three of them enter and the sounds of a surprised woman greeting them leaves the bakery before the door is shut completely. Nozomi turns her attention to Eli, her warm smile still on her face as the blonde glanced back at her.

"Now we wait?" Nozomi asks amused.

"Now we wait." Eli confirms with a nod, gesturing Nozomi to walk closer to her.

The violet haired girl does, looking curiously up to Eli. Eli slides down the bench to where Umi sat before, patting the now empty spot beside her. Nozomi grins before climbing up and sitting next to Eli, taking her offer of sitting next to her in the drivers spot of the bench. The two smile at each other and sit in complete silence, no more words needed as they began to spend the time watching the carriage and waiting out the time.

* * *

Back at the castle everything was going as it should be. Maki hadn't realized that the Captain's duties were a lot easier than Eli always made them out to be and Nico made sure to guide her whenever she strayed from the task at hand. Everything was going as smoothly as it needed to and Maki walked with a proud smile towards the Queen's chambers

"We've done pretty good today Maki-chan." Nico says to her.

"I think so too. I never knew the Captain's duties were this easy." She comments, glancing to her partner.

"You're just getting lucky. You've had a problem free day since the Queen has told everyone to take it easy because of the heat." The twin tailed girl replies. "Next time Eli leaves Captain duties to you I bet it'll be a lot harder."

Maki only hums as the two of them arrive at the Queen's study. She knocks loudly on the door and gets a muffled reply. She opens it carefully, stepping inside and bowing her head to the Queen.

"Good afternoon, Nishikino-san." the Queen greets her with a smile. "Have you come to give me the Captain's report."

Maki nods as Nico closes the door behind her. She steps forward, placing a scroll down on the Queen's table.

"Since the instructions to take it easy are in place, there isn't much to report. There were a few minor things such as a window cracking, but otherwise everything in the castle seems to be in good shape." Maki says with confidence. The Queen smiles warmly as she nods.

"That's good to hear. We'll see that the window gets fixed as soon as possible. Until then have the staff cover the broken window up."

"Yes, your majesty. Is there anything else you might need in this moment?" Maki asks. The Queen contemplates it before shaking her head.

"Everything seems good. Just have someone let me know when my daughter returns from her outing." The Queen says.

"Of course, your majesty." Maki says with a smile. "We'll be our on way then."

As Nico and Maki turned to head to the exit, the door to the Queen's study is shoved open by a heavy breathing Rin. Her eyes are wide as she steps inside, looking directly to Maki and the Queen.

"P-Pardon the intrusion." She says breathlessly, bowing her head in an apology. "Your Majesty, Maki, there are three knights at the castle gates. They're requesting to have an audience with you right away and say they have an important message for you!"

Maki and Nico's share a confused gaze before Maki turns back to the Queen. Her smile has turned into a worried frown and she stands from her seat, looking seriously to Maki.

"Nishikino-san, Yazawa-san, please arrange for someone to summon the captain and meet her at the entrance of the castle. Hoshizora-san, I want you to instruct the gate keeper to let the three messengers in and have them wait outside the main entrance of the courtroom. Do not let them in until my daughter and the Captain have returned. "

"Yes, your majesty!" the three of them chorus, moving quickly. Rin speeds down the opposite side of the hallway while Maki and Nico head the other way, small frowns gracing their lips.

"Who on earth could be requesting an audience with the Queen?" Nico asks in a serious tone.

"I'm not sure. Whoever it is must have some serious business if the Queen didn't receive any notice of it beforehand." Maki replies. "Come on, we need to get to Hideko and Fumiko. They should be back from patrolling the walls by now."

The two increase their pace as they head down the staircase and towards the entrance where they hoped to find Hideko and Fumiko.

* * *

Eli and Nozomi sat in the same spots they had been before. The two of them made idle conversation as they sat on the carriage as well as assisting and talking with the occasional villager that walked by. Nozomi was amused by how formal Eli was with each person that spoke to her and she watched Eli with a fond smile as she held a smaller child up to pet one of the horses. The little girl thanked her with a bright smile before Eli put her back down on the ground. She said a small good bye to the two of them before walking back to her mother that waited not far off. Eli waved as to them one final time before they began to walk away.

"I feel like I've just seen a completely different side to Elichi." Nozomi muses out loud. Eli looks to her and smiles.

"That's because you've never seen me interact one on one with the villagers until now." She replies, walking over to Nozomi. She doesn't move to climb back up as she rests her arms on the bench, placing her chin down on top of them and looking up to Nozomi.

"Fair point." Nozomi says, watching Eli with a smile. "It's quite fun to see new sides to you, Elichi."

Eli doesn't respond as the loud sound of a horn echoes through the air. She immediately stands straight as both her and Nozomi turn towards the castle in alarm.

"Was that..?" Nozomi lets her voice trail off as the horn sounds off again, confirming that the two of them weren't hearing things.

"We're being summoned back. Something must have happened." Eli frowns, pushing herself away from the carriage and speeding over to the door of the bakery.

As she reached the door Umi pushes it open, her amber eyes looking confused at Eli.

"Was that what I think it was?" She asks. Eli nods.

"I'm afraid so. We're needed back at the castle." She says apologetically. Umi shakes her head, turning back into the house and saying a few words that go unheard by Eli.

It isn't long before Kotori and Honoka have exited. Eli apologizes to Honoka's mother and promises that they'll bring Kotori, Umi and Honoka back some day soon. She waves it off, telling Eli that castle duties come first and that there will be other days for a longer stay. She smiles at the older woman before heading to the carriage and climbing back into the drivers spot.

"Is everyone ready?" Eli asks. Honoka opens the tiny window.

"We're good Captain!" Honoka confirms. Eli flicks her wrists quickly and the horses moves with a start. Eli makes sure to increase their pace as they trotted back down the path towards the castle.

Once they returned, the gates were open and waiting for them. Eli guided the horses through the open gate and looked over to the castle entrance to see that Maki was standing out front of the doors with Nico by her side. Eli pulled the carriage to a halt only a few feet away from them and looked to her stand in with a serious expression.

"Maki, what's going on?" Eli asked, climbing down from her seat at the front of the carriage. Nozomi had opened the door allowing Kotori, Honoka and Umi to climb out as Maki relayed the situation to Eli.

"Three knights have requested an audience with the Queen. The Queen hasn't received any word about messengers arriving from another kingdom and she requested we summon you and Kotori back to the castle."

Eli hummed concerned before looking to the others.

"Let's not waste any more time. If it was urgent enough to call the Princess and I back then it has to be important." Eli takes a few large strides towards the door with Nozomi following not far behind her. After them was Kotori, followed closely by Honoka and Umi with Maki and Nico following after them.

The small group made their way wordlessly into the courtroom, Rin giving a small wave as a greeting as they entered. The Queen was already seated in her throne, Hanayo standing not too far behind and smiling as she saw her friends approaching the thrones.

"Mother, what' going on?" Kotori asked as they reached the end of the path, taking the few steps towards her own throne and staring at her mother curiously.

"Someone has come to deliver a message in person from another kingdom." The Queen answers. "I'm sorry to interrupt your outing but you and the Captain needed to be present for this."

"It's alright, I wouldn't want to miss something this important either." Kotori replies as she sits more comfortably in her chair.

The Queen nods to Eli as she took her spot only a few feet from her throne. Nozomi stepped off to the back where Hanayo stood, giving her a reassuring smile. Honoka and Umi took their place on the other side of Kotori's throne, mirroring where Eli stood on the opposite side of the Queen. Nico and Maki stepped off to the farther end of the room where a few guards were stationed. With everyone present and prepared for the visitors, the Queen gave the signal for the guards to let the messengers in. Rin and the red haired guard Akira walked towards the closed doors. They each placed their hands on the door handles and with a mighty pull, the doors slowly creaked open.

When the doors had been completely opened, three figures walked down the long red carpet towards the thrones where Kotori and her mother sat. They were clad in matching white tunics their cloaks open and hoods down leaving their faces uncovered. Leading them was a shorter brown haired girl with bright green eyes. To her right walked a long red haired girl with stern turquoise eyes that reflected the serious aura that came off of her. To the brown haired girls left was an auburn haired girl with a fuchsia gaze, her expression emotionless as she marched next to her comrade. Both Nozomi and Nico's breaths hitched and Nico tensed, clenching her firsts tightly. Maki spared a glance to her, noticing her quickly paling face and the slight shake of her arms. When she glanced back the three visitors had reached the end of the red carpet and kneeled before Queen Minami with their heads bowed.

The whole courtroom is silent as everyone eyes the visitors curiously. Appreciating the distraction, Nozomi glanced over to Nico who quickly made eye contact with her. Both girls began to slowly make their way towards the exits, ignoring the Queen as she began to speak.

"It's quite rare for me to have visitors from another kingdom without any notice. You may rise and state your names and where you hail from."

The brown haired girl in the center stands first, her arms falling to her sides.

"Please forgive us for not sending you a letter informing the details, your Majesty. We were deployed from Akiba the moment our King returned." She begins in a smooth voice. "My name is Captain Kira Tsubasa. These are my right hand girls Toudou Erena and Yuuki Anju. We make up Akiba's elite knight squadron, A-Rise. We have been sent with an urgent letter to you from the King of our home country."

She pulls a sealed scroll from her belt and holds it out towards the Queen. Eli steps forward, taking the scroll from her and nodding in thanks before walking back over to the Queen. She hands the scroll carefully to the ash haired woman before turning back to the three girls who stood in front of her. Eli eyed and scanned them with a careful gaze. To Kotori's right, Umi had begun doing the same and quickly noticed that the trio had arrived weaponless. Akiba knights entering without weapons must have meant they did not want any unnecessary fighting, which calmed the navy haired girl.

Off to the side of the room Maki's eyes widened as she recognized the names. She glanced to her side and quickly noticed Nico wasn't there any longer. She curses quietly, making sure everyone in the courtroom had their eyes on the Akiba trio before she too silently crept towards the exit. She needed to find Nico and be there for her, to keep her calm and level headed so she didn't attempt to do anything rash.

"My my," the Queen states holding the sealed scroll. "And what might Ren want from my kingdom?"

"All the information is disclosed in that scroll." Tsubasa replies. "Our instructions were to deliver the scroll to you and if you needed any clarifications, we would give them to you."

Eli frowns and the Queen breaks the seal, unraveling the parchment. Her eyes scan back and forth before widening slightly. They soon darken and she looks over to the three girls, her voice much lower when she spoke again.

"Is he serious?" She asks, slightly baffled. Kotori looks worriedly at her mother and the atmosphere of the courtroom began to tense.

"He is." Erena states. "King Ren wants justice for the late King and Queen."

"And what makes you think these two are here in my kingdom?" The Queen asks in a calm voice.

Eli and Umi make brief eye contact, clearly lost. Whatever that scroll said wasn't good news and the two knew by the Queen's reaction that Ren had made some useless demand. Eli allows herself to glance to the side to see what Nozomi may have thought but Nozomi no longer stood in the spot she had been moments earlier. Only Hanayo stood there alone, looking nervously at the Akiba knights. Eli grit her teeth as she turned back ahead to give a small glare to the three girls.

"Your Majesty," Tsubasa starts, her voice clear and calm like the Queen's. "Our orders are as the letter says. We are to collect Tojo Nozomi and Yazawa Nico so they can face a trial for the crimes they committed. The King is certain they are here as well as a couple knights who admitted to competing with Yazawa Nico on the last day of the Summer Solstice Festival's events. If you choose not to hand them over to us, then Akiba will officially declare war on the Otonokizaka kingdom."

Sharp breaths are heard all around the room and Kotori looks from her mother to the three knights with a stern gaze. At the far end of the courtroom Rin's eyes widened and Hanayo covered her mouth to stifle any gasp from her. Both Honoka and Umi had stern expressions as they glared at the three knights and before any other words could be said, Eli stepped forward.

"Permission to speak, your majesty?" The Queen only hums, giving Eli the approval she needed. Eli turns to A-Rise with a calm gaze.

"My name is Ayase Eli. I am the Captain of all the Queen's knights." She introduces herself to the three girls. "I'd like to settle this as peacefully as possible."

"That would be ideal for us as well, Captain." Anju says with a small smile. "We do not want any unnecessary wars to start as well."

"Good." Eli says. " Your King seems determined to get these two. Why is that exactly?" She asks in her stern voice.

"For manslaughter." Tsubasa declares loudly. Eli looks bewildered at Tsubasa before Erena steps forward. She looks Eli directly in the eyes as she began to elaborate on her Captain's words.

"Tojo Nozomi has been charged for murdering the King and Queen of Akiba. Yazawa Nico was her accomplice, supplying her with the poison that killed our beloved royals as well as assisting her in escaping from the guards."

Every word Nozomi had said to Eli that night when she confessed her and Nico were fugitives flashes through Eli's mind. She stands straighter, making sure not to let her expression sway as the realization of what Nozomi had tried to tell her hit her like an arrow piercing directly through her chest. She only nods a bit as she composes herself before speaking again.

"That is indeed, a dire situation." She says solemnly. "I'm afraid I don't have good news for you. The two girls you are looking for aren't in the castle at the moment.." Tsubasa frowns, clearly not pleased.

"Oh?" She inquires, her eyes narrowing at Eli.

"Yazawa Nico and Tojo Nozomi were deployed on a mission with one of my squad members. They were sent to the village far west of the castle town to recruit new guards for our kingdom." Eli lies smoothly. "The trio won't be back for another four days."

Anju frowns and Erena crosses her arms.

"Don't fret, I have an idea. A sort of compromise, if that's alright." Eli pauses momentarily to make sure that she had the girls attention before continuing. "The moment they return, I will deliver both of them to you myself. All I ask is that you wait it out in one of the town inns. There's no point traveling to the village since there are many routes you could take and I myself am not sure which path they have chosen to get to their destination."

The trio looks skeptical as the two girls on either side of Tsubasa looked to her for her opinion.

"Four days and both criminals, or a war over nothing. The choice is yours." the blonde adds as a final statement, waiting patiently for their decision. Kotori wants to stand up and object and her amber eyes are glaring daggers towards the captain of her guards. Before she can utter a single word her mothers gaze catches her eyes. The Queen's serious gaze causes Kotori to falter and she puts her earlier thoughts away and obeys the silent request of her mother.

"It's a deal, Captain Ayase." Tsubasa says, extending a hand. "We'll stay at the inn on the outskirts of the castle town, and if you haven't come to us by the time all four days are up then we will return here."

Eli takes her hand and shakes it, only nodding to her.

"I will see you in four days time then, Captain Kira." Eli says.

The three Akiba knights thank the royals for their time and bow before making their exit. When the doors are shut behind them a quiet murmur begins in the courtroom. Kotori had stood so quickly and so abruptly that her throne scrapes against the tiled floor. Both Umi and Honoka freeze from the sudden loud noise and watch as the Princess quickly marches down the steps and over to Eli with a furious gaze. Eli had turned around just in time to face the angry princess and her eyes widened as she took a step back startled.

"Eli-chan how could you?!" She almost shouts. Eli doesn't say a single word as Kotori continues to speak.

"How could you just sell out Nico-chan and Nozomi-chan like that?!" Her lower lip trembled and her face melted from an angered expression to a hurt one, her hands lifting into small fists in front of her.

"Why!? Don't you care about them?! Aren't they your friends too?!"

It was more of a series of demands than questions and Eli could feel her expression crumbling from the stern, straight face she wore into a frown. Her eyes flashed with a hint of pain as she glanced away from Kotori's eyes. Kotori's breath caught in her throat at the unfamiliar expression from the Captain and she immediately regretted attacking her with her accusations. She watches shocked as Eli then bows her head to her in apology to her.

"It was the only way I could buy them time, Princess." Eli says, doing her best to keep her voice neutral. "The Queen could make up any excuse she needs to to send A-Rise away but eventually that would lead to war. If I didn't admit to the both of them being here, I would be preparing all of our knights for a war that would have started because of a greedy king."

Kotori says nothing as Umi, Hanayo and Honoka approach her. Honoka gently takes Kotori's hand in her own and looks at her with sympathetic eyes.

"Kotori-chan, the Captain's right." She mumbles quietly, and Kotori looks down and nods in agreement with her ginger haired knight.

"I'm sorry Princess, you'll have to excuse me. I need to find Nozomi." Eli lifts her head, not making eye contact with the ash haired girl as she moves towards the closest exit. Now that she knew what Nozomi had wanted to tell her all those days ago, she needed to apologize for being so dense. She needed to tell her she was going to be okay and that she intended to keep her word and keep both her and Nico safe.

Umi moved as well, following Eli with quick steps and a heated gaze. Rin had walked over to the small group, only looking worriedly between the Princess, Hanayo and Honoka. Without any words Kotori turned away from the direction Eli and Umi walked towards to head for the exit on the opposite side of the room. Honoka and Hanayo give Rin an apologetic glance before they follow Kotori out of the courtroom. Rin watches for a moment before heading the other way, deciding to follow both Umi and Eli.

"Criminals." Umi seethes in a quiet voice as she follows Eli through the exit. "They're murdering criminals." Her voice sounds betrayed and Eli closes her eyes. She mentally counts to three before she responds.

"Umi, there has to be more to this. I won't make any hasty decisions without hearing what Nozomi and Nico have to say." The blonde says in her neutral voice.

"We have just been given the choice between a war or keeping two criminals and you're saying we need to hear their story first?!" Umi says baffled. "Captain, shouldn't the answer be obvious?! We're not endangering the kingdom or keeping either of them here any longer."

"Do you know who's responsible for stopping both criminals during the last attempt made to kidnap the princess?!" Eli stops and glares at Umi. Umi catches her gaze her glare softening under Eli's as she doesn't say anything.

"Nico and Nozomi. Nico was responsible for arresting the first criminal, and if it wasn't for Nozomi trying with what little skills she knew, there was a good chance you and Honoka would have been hunted down by the second criminal! If Nico wasn't as quick as she had been, both Maki and I may have been dead. If Nozomi hadn't chased down the second criminal, the Princess could have been injured or kidnapped!" She takes a small deep breath in and exhales slowly, calming herself down. Her glare had softened into a hard gaze as she speaks quieter. "If they had any cruel intentions here in our kingdom, then I don't think Nico would have come to our aid that night and Nozomi would have never put her life in danger to try and hold off the second girl from reaching you and Honoka."

Umi's still quiet and it's then that Eli notices Rin was there, shuffling her feet awkwardly as she looked between her and Umi. Eli sighs, shaking her head and pinching the bridge of her nose.

"Rin, we need to find Nozomi and Nico. You're quick at finding everyone, so we'll be following you. Where should we start?"

Rin gives it a bit of contemplation, before taking a couple steps down the hall.

"We should check the stables and see if their horses are still here. If they are then all we gotta do is check the places they go to most in the castle!" She exclaims. Eli removes her hand from her face, nodding. Umi takes a few steps to follow Rin, her gaze still cold.

"Good thinking Rin." The blue haired girl says. "Let's do this as quickly as possible."

Eli moves to follow her two squad members closely, her thoughts lingering on the two Akiba girls and how they had been handling the arrival of A-Rise.

* * *

Nozomi had been pacing carefully underneath the gazebo. Her and Nico had met outside of the courtroom and Nozomi could only listen as Nico instructed her to head to the garden while she saw to a couple of things. It had been ten minutes since then and to keep Nozomi's mind distracted from A-Rise arriving to the castle, she paced and began to think of any and all possible outcomes that were to come. Very few of them ended good and knowing that stressed the spiritual girl out more. The sound of footsteps on the wooden floor of the gazebo reaches her ears and she looks over to the entrance in slight panic. She soon relaxes when she see's concerned amethyst orbs gazing at her.

"Well there you are." Maki say quietly. Nozomi offers her a pathetic smile as Maki steps over to her.

"Have you seen Nico?" She asks in a hushed voice. "She bolted from the courtroom, I checked the stables and Kuro was still there locked in his stall so she hasn't been there. I wanted to check her room next but when I passed by the garden I thought there might be a chance she was here."

Nozomi shakes her head, words failing her as she gazes away from Maki. Maki sighs as she runs her hands through her bangs, brushing them out of the way as she began to think about possible places her partner may have run off to. The thoughts don't last long as she glances to the side Nozomi was on, watching as she stared off at no where in particular. Her eyes were clouded and dull, and Maki lowered her arms down as she watched the violet haired girl.

"Are... are you alright?" Maki asks with hesitance, bringing Nozomi out of her trance for a second time. Nozomi offers a pained smile closing her eyes so she didn't have to look into Maki's.

"I've had better days." She says quietly. Maki isn't sure how to respond and she thanks every higher being when Kotori, Honoka and Hanayo entered the gazebo.

"Nozomi!" Kotori exclaims, rushing over to her and grabbing her hands. "Nozomi, Eli bought you time!" She holds Nozomi's hands up in hers tightly, watching as her dull eyes brighten slightly and widen at her words.

"T-The Captain is looking for you now, Nozomi-chan." Hanayo adds. "Both you and Nico-chan. She seemed worried."

Nozomi only hums concerned as she gently pulls her hands away from Kotori's and takes the few steps to the gazebo entrance.

"Maybe I better go find them." Nozomi says with concern, taking a couple steps down the pathway

Maki's eyes widen and a small frown appears on her face. She knew that even if Eli was having a change of heart, Umi would not take lightly to this. She recalls the first meeting after Nozomi and Nico arrived where Eli stated she would kill both Nozomi and Nico herself if they turned out to be a threat to the kingdom. If she didn't act quickly she knew whatever meeting Eli wanted to have with the two of them wouldn't end well and so she moved to follow Nozomi in hopes that she could prevent anything terrible from happening.

The two of them don't make it far before they abruptly stop at the sight of another person making their entrance.

"Oh! Nozomi-chan!" Rin's eyes light up and she smiles relieved as she notices the rest of the group. "And everyone else too! Captain! Umi-chan! Everybody's here!"

Nozomi stiffens as Umi comes into view first, a deathly serious expression on her features. Eli isn't far behind and she quickly makes eye contact with Nozomi. When Nozomi see's Eli's apologetic expression her breath hitches, knowing Eli had finally figured it all out. She forces herself to break eye contact, not wanting Eli to see the tears that began to well up in her eyes. Eli's gaze softens more as she steps past Umi, moving closer to the violet haired girl.

"Nozomi..." Is all the blonde can mumble. She had no words to say, she wasn't sure exactly what she should do. She wasn't even sure if her theory had been correct. She needed answers. As if sensing this, Nozomi began to speak.

"Elichi, I'm sorry." She starts quietly, not moving from her spot. "There's a lot that I need to explain and-"

"You're certainly right about that." Umi suddenly cuts her off, stepping forward from behind Rin and nudging Eli out of the way as she stepped towards the surprised girl. With a swift movement Umi had drawn her sword and pointed it's tip directly towards Nozomi's chest. Nozomi's eyes widen and she freezes up completely, looking directly at Umi in fear. Eli and Maki visibly tense as Hanayo gasps and Honoka had moved quickly out of instinct, blocking Kotori from both Nozomi and the angry Umi.

"We've been suspecting you had been hiding something the moment you arrived, but I never would have guessed that you were murderous criminals." Umi's eyes are dark and her voice raises. "Because of you both, our kingdom is in dang- AH"

Whatever Umi had intended to say went unheard as she yelped in surprise when her legs had been kicked from underneath her. Everyone had been so preoccupied with Umi's sword pointed at Nozomi that nobody had noticed the entrance of another person, who moved in a swift blur the moment she arrived. Once Umi's back came into contact with the ground the tip of a sword was pressed faintly against her throat and she looked up with wide eyes towards the person who caught her off guard.

"UMI-CHAN!" Kotori cries, trying to move forward but being blocked by Honoka, who held her good arm in front of the worried princess.

"Nico." Maki whispers as she stares at the girl she had been searching for this entire time.

Nico's ruby eyes glared furiously down at Umi, her hand steady as her sword stayed pointed towards Umi's throat. She stood protectively in front of Nozomi, who could only stare with wide eyes at the back of her friend before mumbling her name quietly in slight relief. The small group stares silently as Nico doesn't take her attention off of the girl that lay on the ground in front of her.

"Don't you dare point your blade towards Nozomi." Nico says dangerously, her voice powerful and intimidating. "Don't you DARE make accusations you don't know anything about! You have absolutely no right to-"

The sound of another sword being unsheathed catches everyone's attention and cutts Nico off. Nico stiffens as the tip of Eli's sword is pointed directly at her own throat and Eli's glare is fierce as Nico's eyes meet her own.

"Sheath your sword Nico. Now." She demands lowly. Nico ignores her, turning her glare back down to Umi as a small bead of sweat slowly rolled down the side of her face. Everyone watches with tense eyes as Nico's arm begins to shake, her resolve slowly crumbling.

"Nicocchi." Nozomi's voice is quiet and barely audible to the group. "Please."

The raven haired girl's lips begin to quiver and she bites her lower lip, doing her best to stay strong and let no emotions show.

"I can't." She says in a shaky voice. "Nozomi I can't."

"Please Nicocchi. Please put your sword away." Nozomi's voice is pleading and Nico shuts her eyes tightly, tilting her head away from Eli's blade.

"I just told you, I can-"

"NICO!" the sudden shout from Nozomi causes Nico to drop her sword. Umi relaxes immediately, shuffling away from the dropped weapon and back onto her feet. With quick movements both Kotori and Honoka moved from their spot at the gazebo entrance to their blue haired lover, who assured the both of them she was fine as she glared towards the two girls who stood only feet away from them. Eli lowers her sword carefully and looks over to Maki, who only has her hand on her sword handle and was watching both Nico and Nozomi with careful eyes.

The tense aura is still in the area and nobody utters a word. Nico slowly turns around to Nozomi, who stared at her with pleading eyes. Nozomi looks directly into her friends eyes and takes a small step forward, speaking in a voice loud enough for everyone in that small area to hear.

"Why did you do that?" She asks. Nico's eyes widen in bewilderment before narrowing quickly, her tone irritated as she spoke.

"What do you mean 'Why'?! I did it to protect you!" Nozomi's eyes narrow and her voice raises.

"I was fine! I'm safe, see?!" She gestures to herself, showing that there was no harm done and everything was okay. "I'm okay!"

"You weren't before!" Nico retorts, pointing an accusing finger at her. "Don't think just because you've been learning to protect yourself that you're suddenly top tier knight material! Eli may be training you, but you certainly don't have the skills to be fine against someone like Umi. You didn't even have your own sword out to defend yourself!"

The small audience is shocked at the discord between both Nozomi and Nico as they glared at each other. There were many things going unsaid and the majority of them had a hard time keeping track of the conversation. Eli felt slightly offended at Nico's training accusation, but she was right. Nozomi was still a beginner and Nico had just stated the truth. She had watched the pain flash across Nozomi's features briefly before she quickly masked the emotion.

"Umi-chan is my friend. There was no need for me to draw my sword when I knew she wouldn't hurt me."

"Right. Wouldn't hurt you. Is that what you're trying to convince yourself?!" Nico's words jab right into a sore spot as Nozomi closes her eyes, her eyebrow twitching in irritation. "Umi was doing her job and her sword was pointed directly at your chest. One good forward thrust and she would have stabbed right through your-"

"Nicocchi." Nozomi's voice is stern and calm as she cuts off her friend. "She didn't do anything, so it's fine."

"IT'S NOT FINE NOZOMI!"

Nico's shout is enough to surprise Nozomi into letting her stern mask crumble, her eyes widening as Nico looked down with her hands shaking uncontrollably as she balled them into fists at her sides. Both Maki and Eli wanted to interfere. They wanted to pull the two apart and let them take a moment to calm down, but the two of them knew better and they knew when they should and shouldn't interfere. With that in mind, they watched the two in front of them with worried gazes.

Nobody dared to look away from the Akiba girls as Nozomi reached her hand out hesitantly, unsure of if she was able to touch Nico or not. She quickly decided against it, retracting her own hand and letting it fall to her side. Nico took a couple deep breaths to compose herself before exhaling slowly and shakily, not daring to lift her head as she began to speak again.

"I can't- I can't lose you." She mumbles in a teary voice, lifting her hands and hugging herself. Nozomi's expression softens as immediate understanding hits her as Nico's broken voice continues.

"First Papa, then Mama, Kokoro, Kokoa and Kotarou too. They're gone now and I'll never see them again." She looks up with tears streaming down her face and everyone can see the pain that swam in Nico's eyes. Maki felt her heart breaking as she watched as the girl she loved started to openly sob in front of the small group.

"I can't lose you too, Nozomi. You're the only family I have left." She confesses right there, not caring about who heard or saw at this point. "I don't know what I'll do if I lose you too."

Nozomi's eyes teared up as she pulled Nico into a tight hug, the shorter girls body shaking as she began to sob more violently into Nozomi's shoulder.

"I'm so sorry." She mumbles, her voice barely audible to the rest of them. "Nicocchi I'm so sorry."

Umi had moved to grab her sword off of the ground but as quickly as she made the movement, Kotori grabbed her hand and held it tightly within hers. Umi locked eyes with Kotori, staring briefly into her soft and gentle gaze before sighing quietly and letting the upset princess lean against her. Honoka and Rin both stood still while Hanayo held her hands tightly in front of her. Maki watched with heavy concern as Nico began hiccupping while she clung onto Nozomi and Eli watched as the purple haired girl rubbed Nico's back soothingly, a small tear escaping from her left eye as she held on to Nico.

Nozomi eventually mumbles to Nico again and the two of them pull away with a bit of reluctance. Nozomi hands Nico a handkerchief, watching as she began to wipe her face clean of any remaining tears and snot from her gross sobs. While Nico did that, Nozomi turned to their group of friends, her eyes dull and face neutral as she looks to them all. Eli could feel a small chill creep up her spin at the gaze.

"Umi," Nozomi begins, making eye contact with the amber eyed girl. Umi's glare is still fierce as she looks at Nozomi and Nozomi's gaze doesn't waver as she stares back at the blue haired girl. "You had every right to point your sword at me. I'm truly sorry for the trouble I've caused."

Nozomi bows her head in apology with Nico following suit. Umi's glare is gone, her expression becoming surprised by the formal apology from the both of them. When the two of them lift their heads, Nozomi's eyes glance over everyone around them with her gaze lingering on Eli before she began to speak again.

"If you all have time, I'll explain everything now." Eli only nods, her eyes never leaving Nozomi.

"An explanation is all we need, Nozomi." She says in a soft voice, earning a light thank you smile from her. Nozomi turned back to the gazebo, taking the few steps towards it so that she was back underneath it. Nico followed her, the two of them taking seats on separate benches underneath the wooden roof.

The rest of the squad followed until everyone was underneath the gazebo. Kotori had been seated in her mothers outdoor throne while Umi and Honoka stood on either side of her. To the right of her sat Rin and Hanayo, and standing not far off between them and where Nico sat was Maki. Eli stood at the entrance of the gazebo while Nozomi sat on the bench that was perfectly between everybody else. Everyone but Nico now looked to Nozomi, patiently waiting for her to begin explaining.

The purple haired girl lets out a small sigh before she looked up to where Eli stood. They stared at each other for a quick moment before Nozomi offered a nervous smile.

"Elichi, do you remember that night when I asked you if you believed in fate?" She asks quietly, and Eli nods."In that story I had said something very important. Something that I thought you would have known right away. I was surprised when you hadn't brought it up or even mentioned anything afterwards, but I went with it. I was relieved at first, I thought it meant you had decided to ignore my previous life and continue living the way we had been. But with A-Rise showing up, I realize that it's gone too far now. I can't keep hiding anymore and it's time that I tell everyone here the truth."

The whole groups ears perked up as Nozomi's eyes dulled more, her iris now a dark and emotionless forest green. She reached her hands onto her thighs, gripping the ends of her tunic in her fingers tightly.

"My full name is Tojo Nozomi." She began, her voice monotone. Her eyes strayed away from Eli, unable to look at her anymore as she uttered the final words of her sentence.

"And I am the Queen of Akiba."


	11. Nozomi's Story

AN: *whispers* I wanted to wait longer but I got too excited so I'm uploading early. Not much to say at all, I hope you all enjoy this chapter! Thank you for all views and feedback ;;w;;!

* * *

The silence is loud as Nozomi's words echo through everyone's ears. Nozomi doesn't look up as her grip onto the hem of her tunic tightens. She can feel almost everyone's eyes on her as she continues to stay silent. Eli's unable to utter a word as she mentally pieces everything from the confession Nozomi told her that night before the festival to all the accusations A-Rise made only moments earlier. She stays in her spot near the gazebo entrance as she begins to make sense of everything.

"A Queen?" Rin speaks quietly, breaking the silence. "You're a Queen, Nozomi-chan?" She scratches her cheek idly, gazing at Nozomi with a lost expression.

Nozomi's gaze doesn't leave the spot she's decided to focus on. Eli's eyes linger on her, thinking back to the day the Queen had given Maki the task of finding and bringing Nozomi back to the kingdom. The Queen had been insistent on getting Nozomi to Otonokizaka and she was still trying to figure out why that was. When Nozomi continued to stay quiet, Eli decided to speak.

"So then your parents were the previous King and Queen?" Eli asks.

Nozomi nods, lifting her head and glancing at Eli.

"That's right Elichi. My parents were the former King and Queen of Akiba," She looks over to the others in the shaded outdoor area, continuing in an emotionless voice. "And I was their only heir."

"My Mother and Father were loved and praised by the whole kingdom. They worked hard to keep Akiba a prosperous and bountiful place where people could happily raise their families and make a good living. They were very proud, but they never boasted about anything. They kept taxes fair and they saw to every crime themselves to make sure every criminal was punished fairly and that every victim's voice was heard. They donated to farms that needed money for their crops, and the Akiba orphans were invited to the castle every couple of months for a dinner with my Mother, Father and I. They were in almost every way, the perfect King and was only one thing they had failed to do throughout their reign."

Nozomi's eyes glazed over before a sad smile crept onto her face.

"They had been so busy with the kingdom and their duties, they had forgotten to spend time with and raise their own daughter themselves."

Seven pairs of eyes wavered. Umi's expression softened and Kotori sniffled lightly. Honoka used her good hand to grasp one of Kotori's in a comforting gesture as she kept her eyes on Nozomi. Hanayo covered her mouth with her hands, a pained expression crossing her features. Rin's sad expression mirrored Maki's, and she leant her head onto Hanayo's shoulder to let the brunette know she felt the same. Eli had to resist every urge to move from her spot and console Nozomi, to speak any and all reassuring words to her. She knew she needed to wait until Nozomi finished the story before any kind of comforting could be done.

"I could never dislike the people for it. It wasn't their fault my parents neglected their own child. However even knowing that didn't stop me from feeling bitter about it. I was being groomed to become Queen of a kingdom my parents showed more love to than their own child, it was only natural I had some negative thoughts and feelings about it all."

She glanced around, making sure that everyone was still paying attention. Her face softened a bit as she continued.

"It was on my twentieth birthday that I met Nicocchi. For Akiba royalty, twenty was the age where any princess or prince was old enough to take over the throne and rule the kingdom. Naturally, my parents were celebrating with a large festival that had fun games for the villagers and a jousting tournament for entertainment. They weren't retiring anytime soon, but they were thrilled their child had lived long enough to be able to take over the kingdom at any time."

"My parents were so proud of me, despite knowing virtually nothing about me. They would never know if I would ever be fit to be Queen. They would never know that being Queen was literally the last thing I wanted." Nozomi let out a small, bitter laugh as she spoke.

"Of course I had passed all my lessons with high marks and when in their company I was the model princess. Graceful, polite, kind, I behaved just as I was taught to around them. My act as the perfect princess helped convince them that I would be a splendid Queen one day, which is probably why they would never know my true thoughts on the matter.""We had been sitting at the joust, and my parents had decided that any knight of my choice would become my personal guard. In their eyes, it was the perfect gift for me. To have a talented challenger become my own official bodyguard, what twenty year old didn't want that? To them it was an ingenious idea." She shuts her eyes, keeping them closed as she continues.

"But to me, it was just another person to watch over me. Another person to guide me to become Queen of a kingdom I wanted nothing to do with, another person to teach me how I should be rather than who I wanted to be. It would be another person that I would want nothing to do with while they silently watched me in whatever activities I'd be doing that day."

"I was ready to leave halfway through the event. I had seen enough of the same man knock different aged people off of their horses until he was down to his next challenger. A very tiny person in an old suit of armor that looked way too big for her with a horse that out stood the many challengers before her." Nozomi opens her eyes and the corners of her lips quirk upwards as she looks at Nico, who turned her gaze to Nozomi when she felt her eyes on her.

"The moment she knocked him off his horse, I was impressed. I watched as she instantly gained new challengers and one after another she knocked all of them down.

I couldn't take my eyes away from the joust at all. Once it was over I watched her take off her helmet, and I could feel myself smiling when I witnessed how happy she became. The way the crowd erupted with surprise and awe, it captivated me. She was so different from all the other knights and challengers I had seen and all I could think about was meeting this interesting girl. At that point I had made up my mind. I decided that I was going to meet her and I would make her my personal knight."

Maki can't help but think back to when Nico won the joust a few weeks before. She thought about the victorious shout of the crowd and the wide eyed smile she couldn't wipe off her face. The way she had looked when they all wished her good luck and the happiness that radiated off of her. She wondered if she made that exact expression when she won the tournament Nozomi spoke about. She looks to the older girl, whose gaze was soft as she continued to stare at Nozomi. Maki mustered a small bit of courage before she sat next to her on the bench, still listening ever so intently as Nozomi continued her story.

"My parents couldn't believe that out of all the candidates to become my knight, I had chosen Niccochi. But I did, and at the end of the tournament I got to knight Nicocchi myself and the closing celebrations were not only for my birthday but also for Nicocchi, the guard who was now in charge of the Princess' protection."

"I still remember our first conversation." Nozomi says slightly amused. "It was right after I pinned that very badge on you." She gestures towards Nico's tunic and everyone's eyes fell on it. It was similar to the flowers Honoka and Umi wore on the left sides of their tunics, and it amused Eli to see that it was the same type of flower but in a light blue shade.

"Do you remember it, Nicocchi?" Nozomi asks, straying from the main topic.

"Of course I do." Nico replies, her voice a bit hoarse. "I don't think anyone ever forgets their first conversation with a Princess. Especially when her first words to you are 'I didn't accidentally stab you, did I?'" An amused smile is on her lips and Nozomi lets out a small airy laugh.

"And your reply was 'If you did it's okay I'll be fine.' You didn't even care that it could have been fatal. You were so nervous about talking so casually with me too." Nozomi grins a bit as Nico rolls her eyes.

"Yeah. That was before I knew how ridiculous you were."

The small group of girls can feel their spirits lifting by Nico and Nozomi reminiscing. After seeing the both of them go through the rush of anger to pained and hurt, it was nice to see the both of them enjoying a happy moment with each other. Eli finds herself leaning against the wooden pillar she stood near as she watches the two of them with soft eyes.

"Indeed." Nozomi says, her smile dwindling before she changed the conversation back to the main topic.

"From that point onward I began to start looking forward to everything. It didn't take Nicocchi long to learn that I wasn't the way I presented myself to everyone. At first I was a bit nervous for how she might react, but she didn't seem to care. Nicocchi was probably the first person to accept me for who I was and she respected the things I wanted to do. If I wanted to rebel and sneak away from my studies to be lazy in the library, she followed me blindly. If I wanted to nap she always found the perfect excuse to get anyone looking for me to back off and check up on me later. She treated me as more than just her princess; she treated me like the friend I hoped she would. She even joined me in activities I'd be doing and we'd end up having a lot of fun together. Those little things really meant the world and more to me and I'll always be grateful for that."

"After about a year or so, my parents began to see things they hadn't seen in me before and I think it was thanks to Niccochi that they wanted to try more. They wanted to make me as happy as she had been and be apart of all of my life more. They began asking about books I had been reading previously and about the tarot cards. They asked anything and everything and struck up conversations that weren't related to what they had done for the kingdom that day, or that were centered around how good it felt to help keep such a nice kingdom happy. They were a bit awkward about it at first but the more they tried, the easier it got."

Everyone but Nico -who had begun to look at the ground- had a small smile upon their faces, imagining the shenanigans Nozomi and Nico would have done together and the happiness that Nozomi must have felt when her parents began making her happy too. Eli could see it all perfectly; Nozomi and Nico causing a mild ruckus around the castle, performing small pranks and lightly teasing each other. Afterwards Nozomi would sit with her parents at dinner and tell them of the day's events and the fun she had. Her heart swelled with love as she continued to imagine the happiness Nozomi must have felt as she finally got closer to her parents.

"Unfortunately," Nozomi starts again, her tone becoming a bit quieter. "It wasn't long lived."

Like a powerful smack to the face, the group remembered how this story ended. The air became thicker in the area they sat in as the mood darkened.

"It was the first day of Spring, and I had begged my parents to let Nicocchi and I go for a ride around the town. With a bit of convincing and a promise to eat dinner with them, they agreed and sent us on our way. Niccochi and I saddled up our horses and headed out towards the pathway leading up the mountain. It was chilly, but the cool breeze felt refreshing and nice as we rode through the remaining slush and snow. That ride felt more like two friends enjoying a beautiful day and not like a princess and her knight riding around the land. It's probably one of the fondest memories I have of being a princess.

"By the time we returned, the royal advisor was waiting for us at the gates." Her eyes darken slightly, her expression becoming unreadable. "Ren had told me my parents had passed away while we were gone. He never said how and I hadn't believed it until I saw their bodies laid side by side in their bed. I didn't shed a single tear until I was alone with Nicocchi in my room."

"It's sort of ironic when I think about it. The moment I had begun to love them more- the moment they felt like real parents to me- was just before they had been taken away."

Nozomi sighs a bit, pausing her story to lift one of her hands and pull one of her twintails in front of her. She began running her hand gently through her hair, her tone of voice empty as she continued the story.

"A funeral was arranged as soon as possible. Since I was past twenty, my coronation was to happen the day after. My parents council didn't want Akiba to be missing a King or Queen for too long. They feared what might happen with the people and of the potential chaos that could occur without a leader. An announcement was sent out to the neighbouring kingdoms, telling of my parents passing and how I would take their place as the new Queen. We were supposed to have a celebratory ball and for a brief moment I began thinking maybe everything would be alright this way. I still had Niccochi, so I wasn't doing this alone."

"At the time we had two different Captains. Captain Kira Tsubasa was the first. Tsubasa and her group were a special group that only served my Father. The three of them didn't stay around the castle much and were often sent out to take care of tasks around the other various villages. Whenever they did return, they would rest up and only discuss whatever their duties were with my Father. The other Captain we had took care of the castle duties like Elichi does here. She had been planning to retire for quite some time and had done so the morning my parents passed. I didn't know who they had planned to use as her replacement, so I gave the promotion to Nicocchi. Being the captain gave her more duties to attend to it also meant that she would still be working right by my side. Which was where I needed her to be."

"Everything didn't stay that great for long. My coronation went as planned. We had a few minutes of silence for my mother and father, I wore the dress that was similar to the one my mother wore the day she became Queen and the kingdom celebrated quite enthusiastically. The ball had been delayed by my request since I wasn't exactly ready to celebrate taking over the kingdom."

"A few days later the cards warned me something big was coming and I needed to act fast or face the consequences. As Nicocchi had been doing her rounds, Ren had been talking with the accomplice he had hired to kill my parents. They carelessly let it slip that before long I would be dead too and the crown was all his for the taking. What he didn't realize was Nicocchi had been passing by his room as they discussed it all and she had heard everything. He didn't count on Nicocchi recruiting members of the castle guard to assist her with a plan to get me to safety; He never thought that we'd find out he was behind the murders."

Eli's hands clench into fists as a murderous glint reflects in her gaze. Had she known this during the festival, she would have made sure to punch him directly in his pompous face that night he caused a scene with the Queen. The blonde purses her lips as she continues to listen intently to Nozomi's story.

"I was torn about leaving at first. I didn't want to abandon the people who had just celebrated me becoming their Queen. I wanted to make my parents proud and be the leader they hoped I would be for them. I knew they would have wanted that more than anything. But I didn't want to stay at all. I never wanted to be the Queen in the first place and yet there I was, the newly crowned Queen of a kingdom I couldn't bring myself to love as much as my they had."

"When Nicocchi said we needed leave, it didn't take her much convincing for me to agree. I planned the escape as quickly as possible for the chance to be free from my new burden. I took advantage of the chance to get away from my new responsibilities the moment it happened only because I didn't want to rule the kingdom." Nozomi looked down to her lap with a guilty expression on her face.

"I had dreams about a life away from the castle. The one goal I had was to leave the kingdom to someone else when my parents decided to retire. From there I would travel together with Nicocchi and see the whole kingdom and more. But when my parents were killed, the obligation to stay as Queen fought against that goal. Even though I wanted to make them proud, I couldn't feel the way they had about their kingdom. I couldn't stay and be attacked by someone who wanted us gone. I still wanted to live and see the world- I wanted to experience everything my storybooks talked about!" Her voice raised a bit, her emotionless eyes reflefting a tiny bit of passion as she spoke.

"I wanted to experience adventure, I wanted to meet new people and-" her voice trails off and her eyes glance towards the ground in front of Eli. "I wanted to fall in love."

Both Maki and Umi's gazes go from Nozomi to Eli, but the blonde showed no signs of noticing their glances.

"Nicocchi knew this. Nicocchi was the only one I told all of my dreams and aspirations too. It was why instead of staying and fighting Ren and his forces, she proposed that we run and we let whoever wanted the power have it. We'd get out of Akiba and we could safely live somewhere else. It sounded like heaven to me despite how irresponsible it was."

"We commenced the escape plan as soon as it was done. I wrote a quick letter to my late Mother's best friend, who happened to be my godmother." She makes eye contact with Kotori as she speaks. "Queen Minami, of the Otonokizaka kingdom."

Both Umi and Honoka look to their princess, Honoka squeezing her hand gently as she watches Kotori's eyes widen at the new information. The relationship between her mother and Nozomi's appeared to be new information to her and her lip quivered slightly.

"I sent out the letter and with the help of some staff, Nicocchi and her squad, we got a few things packed up quickly and made our way to the stables." Nozomi takes a small breath as she lifts her hands to rub her temples gently.

"Everything afterwards was a chaotic blur. Before we had even gotten out of the castle grounds, Ren stopped us. He pointed an accusing finger towards me and said he had evidence to prove that I was the one who killed my parents."

Nico grips the fabric of her pants. Her knuckles began turning white from how tightly she clung onto them. Maki glances to her clenched hand before hesitantly placing one of her hands on top of Nico's to comfort her slightly. She can feel the raven haired girl's gaze land on her and how Nico's fingers loosen from the fabric, allowing Maki to take the opportunity and slip her fingers between Nico's. She squeezed the tiny hand that fit perfectly with hers reassuringly and in return Nico gave a tiny squeeze of her own.

"The accusation was so sudden an uproar started." Nozomi's voice continues. "Many of the castle staff that heard this were confused and hurt. They felt betrayed and in the heat of the moment, they all listened to Ren. I wanted to stay back, I wanted to shout he was wrong but there was no time. Nicocchi and I ran. We ran to the only place in the whole kingdom where we'd be safe for a night."

Her emerald gaze finally lowers again back to her lap.

"We went to Nicocchi's farm."

A few pairs of eyes looked at Nico and she swiftly turned away from everyone. They divert their gazes, knowing she was probably uncomfortable with their stares.

"Her mother brought us in and I relayed the situation to her. Since our arrival was so sudden, Nicocchi's younger siblings had woken up and wanted to do anything but go back to sleep. So Nicocchi did one of the things she did best and told them all stories of how great a knight she was and the amazing mission she was on to save me from the evil man who murdered my parents."

Everyone under the gazebo was surprised to hear that Nico had siblings. Maki wondered if they were just like her, short and boastful, with matching ruby red eyes. They would definitely be cute if that was the case. She could imagine Nico doing her proud stance and acting out all the stories just for them. Maki kept her gaze on Nico, letting her thoughts wander as Nozomi's voice became background noise to her.

"While she did that, her mother and I got as many more supplies as we could from the house to have it ready for when Nicocchi and I would leave the next morning. She helped Nicocchi and I figure out the way out of Akiba the fastest and from there we didn't know where we might go."

"Early morning came fast and Niccochi and I quietly got ourselves ready despite the very little rest we go. Niccochi's mother had wished us goodbye,and we quickly went on our way." Nozomi paused before continuing. "Not a moment later, the sound of the guards was in the distance and..."

Nozomi's voice trailed off again as she lwt go of her hair to nervously play with the fabric of her tunics sleeves. Her voice was barely above a whisper, but in the quiet atmosphere of the gardens gazebo, everyone was able to hear it as clear as a bell.

"We heard one, loud scream. We don't know what happened after that and we didn't dare to look back and find out."

Maki wordlessly gripped on Nico's hand tighter, giving it a comforting squeeze. Nico gripped it back tightly, trying hard to distract herself from Nozomi's words. Eli took a small step towards the bench Nozomi sat on but hesitantly stepped back, feeling conflicted on if she should act now or wait until Nozomi finished.

"From that point on, we traveled until we were almost out of Akiba. Nicocchi tore down every wanted poster that popped up along the way and we made sure to cover our trail as best as possible so Ren couldn't track us."

"We were almost out of Akiba when Maki-chan had found us." Nozomi smiles in the direction of the red head. "I was so relieved. It had been so long and the Queen had sent someone to help us arrive safely. Nothing could bring me down. It was in that moment I started to have hope that maybe we had escaped. Maybe everything really would be okay. We were going to be safe and with the Queen's help there was nothing Ren would be able to do to get either of us."

Apologetic green eyes look over towards Eli. Eli doesn't look away, her own blue eyes staring directly into Nozomi's.

"I'm so sorry, Elichi. I really wanted to tell you. I wanted to tell all of you." she looks to everyone else while speaking. "I wanted you all to know the complete truth. That night I had really, really tried to tell you Elichi. But I couldn't." She turns her gaze back to Eli, focusing on only her as she continued to speak.

"I was afraid you would reject me after learning the truth. I was afraid you'd feel betrayed that I couldn't trust you with this. I was afraid you'd hate me for being selfish and abandoning my kingdom the way I did" She bows her head.

"I truly am sorry, from the bottom of my heart."

Eli's taken aback and she moves to step forward again. Nozomi didn't need to be sorry for this. Before she can voice her concerns, Kotori stands from the throne she was seated on.

"This isn't your fault, Nozomi-chan!" She exclaims. "Mother and I had the option of telling everyone but we thought that in time when the commotion in Akiba died down, it'd be safer to reveal who you were then. We all decided that together, it wasn't just you!"

"Princess..." Eli whispers, looking at Kotori. So Kotori had known; that was expected. It must have been what they discussed that day when Nozomi and Nico had arrived. That day when they decided to do the fake marriage.

Eli's brows furrow. Their fake marriage. Was that just for show? To ensure Nozomi would be forced to stay in Otonokizaka with Eli as her 'wife'? She didn't want to believe that. She couldn't. There had to be more to that fake ceremony than just that. She glances at the ring she wore, finally used to seeing it there on her finger.

As she thought about it more, Eli had to conclude she didn't hate it either. Nozomi was very beautiful that day and it had been the nicest Spring day she remembered. When she had linked arms with her, she remembered the feelings they shared. How they decided to be friends and how Eli had felt an excitement she hadn't felt since she became apart of the castle's knights. It was the first time she had looked forward to doing something with somebody and not just one thing on her own.

There was a swift movement as Maki stood up from the bench she and Nico sat on, her hand letting go of Nico's as she looked to everyone in the area. Eli was brought out from her thoughts as she looked towards her junior. Maki's expression was nervous but determined. She looked to everyone again for good measure and Eli continued to watch with curiosity.

"You weren't the only one who knew, Princess." Maki says. She turns her gaze to Eli and Umi, an apologetic look on her face. She bows her head quickly.

"I'm sorry Captain. Eli. Umi." She lifts her head, her hands balling in fists at her sides.

"I knew. I've known this whole time." A couple gasps are heard from the two gingers and Umi and Eli go wide eyed.

"Maki," Eli begins quietly "You knew? How long have you known this?!" The red head's gaze doesn't waver as she stares directly into Eli's eyes.

"I've known since the day I met up with them. We had entered an Inn that had wanted posters of them and I saw Nico had torn them down. I cornered her about it later on because seeing wanted posters of the girl our Queen was looking for concerned me." She bites her lip lightly, before continuing.

"And like the stupid idiot she just took me to my room and spit the whole story out, showing me her Akiba Captain's badge saying she could trust me. I was a knight of the Otonokizaka kingdom, She had no reason not to. To me that just-" Maki hesitates before she continues in a quieter voice.

"It meant a lot. Someone who had just met me knew I was trustworthy enough to protect such a big secret. Someone who was the former Captain of another countries knights completely trusted the right hand knight of their neighbouring country without a second thought. It was probably the most important thing to happen since I had been promoted and I didn't want to let her down."

Nico glances up in awe towards Maki as she confessed to the people in the garden. Honoka looks thoughtfully from Maki to Kotori before speaking her thoughts.

"So only Kotori-chan and Maki-chan knew the truth about Nozomi-chan and Nico-chan?" She asks. Eli immediately shakes her head. She stares at the floor in front of her, her voice reflecting the guilt she felt when she spoke.

"No. Nozomi did try to tell me. But I didn't make the connection at all." Eli turns to look out at the gardens. "Not until A-Rise said she was wanted for murdering the King and Queen. " The blonde silently chided herself for being so dense and not seeing such an important detail right away.

It gets quiet again and Nico rises to her feet, standing tall next to Maki. She turns her body towards Umi and her serious gaze locks with Umi's soft one.

"Umi, I'm sorry." she states, bowing slightly as an apology for the second time. She stands straighter, crossing her arms as she stares at the knight.

"You understand why I did what I did now though, right? I had to protect her. Even though we aren't in Akiba anymore, even if you didn't actually intend to hurt her. Nozomi is still my Queen. I made a vow to always protect her and that vow won't ever be broken until the day one of us dies."

Umi's cheeks tint a light pink and she lifts her hands, shaking her head at Nico.

"Please, don't apologize Nico. I should be apologizing." She lowers her hands, looking down. "I acted rash without thinking through everything. I should have never drawn my sword and I carelessly let my emotions get the better of me." Umi looks mortified with herself before glancing over to Nozomi. She bows her head low, her hair falling like a curtain beside her face.

"I've done something terrible by pointing my sword at you, Nozomi. I truly am sorry for my actions and for the accusations I made."

Nobody expected the smile to appear on Nozomi's face before she spoke.

"Raise your head please, Umi-chan." She request politely. Umi does as instructed and she falters upon seeing Nozomi's warm smile.

"I understand why you did what you did. You don't need to be sorry at all. You thought that I caused a threat to come to the kingdom and you wanted to protect it. It's okay and I'm happy that Kotori-chan has someone like you who is ready to do anything to keep your home safe. Even if it means having to confront your friend." Nozomi says quietly.

The blue haired girl finds herself unable to look away from Nozomi. She returns the smile with a small one of her own, her worries melting away as Nozomi reassured her. Nozomi's gaze soon lands on Eli and shortly after everyone else's did too. The blonde had walked away from her spot at the gazebo entrance and began to pace, many thoughts running through her mind as she began to process all the information that she was learning from this.

"Captain." Umi calls to Eli, bringing her out of her train of thoughts. "What are we going to do about this?"

Truthfully, Eli had no idea how to answer. She felt lost, she needed more time to take in everything she had learnt. Everything Nozomi had told them was being permanently etched into her mind. All she could think about was Nozomi's life before Nico. How long Nozomi had been friendless? How long she had suffered alone without anyone? It hurt her to imagine Nozomi alone, especially when Nozomi always expressed how fond she was of being together with everyone. Her mind wandered to other things, like how long her and Nico had to endure the pain that Ren had brought upon them and how their families had been taken away from them all at the expense of a greedy power hungry adviser. Eli hadn't realized how much she valued her comrades and friendships until Nozomi had come into her life and it broke her heart knowing that it had taken so long for Nozomi to finally meet Nico. To finally get to Otonokizaka. To finally be with Eli.

To the Captain it wasn't fair; it wasn't right. She was seething and she wanted to ride to Akiba herself to teach Ren a lesson he'd never forget. To say she was angry would be an understatement, she was outright furious and she couldn't believe such a horrible man existed. But she was also the Captain, and if she did anything like that she knew it'd only be asking for felt so many conflicting emotions and she knew that if any more came her way she would become overwhelmed. She gives a small sigh, closing her eyes and shaking her head to clear it of its thoughts.

"We have a few days. If we all work together, we'll be able to come up with something." Maki states, knowing that Eli had been thinking about a similar plan. She looks over to Nozomi who hasn't taken her eyes away from Eli. The violet haired girl turns her body, facing it in the direction of Eli and letting go of her tunic.

"Elichi." she calls to her friend and Eli focuses her attention on the green eyed girl. Nozomi smiles a small sad smile and Eli can feel her eyes softening as she stared at her.

"I'm sorry you were dragged into this mess. The fake wedding was for the purpose of changing my last name." She confesses. "We thought that if I continued to live under the Tojo name, it would be a lot easier for Ren to find me and try to cause more trouble than he already had. So the Queen thought that if I was introduced as Ayase Nozomi, anyone curious about me would linger on the fact that I was the wife of the Captain and not the name that matched the runaway Queen of Akiba."

In the background, Rin questions about what fake wedding. Hanayo puts a finger to her lips, whispering back that it would be explained. Honoka looks at Umi, who shares an equally confused look with her, before they look at Kotori. Guilt is all over her face as she looks down, not wanting to be the one to explain the fake ceremony. Eli's blue eyes don't leave Nozomi's green as she continues.

"I'm sorry you were dragged into protecting me that way. It really wasn't right or fair to you. You should have been able to know why you were doing it." Nozomi closes her eyes.

"When I asked you to be my friend, it was all genuine. From the moment you entered the Queen's chambers and blindly agreed to what she said, I knew I wanted to be your friend. I wanted to know everything about you. What drove you to be so passionate? What made you so serious about Otonokizaka that you would just willingly marry someone to keep it safe? I was filled with a curiosity I'd never experienced before, not even with Nicocchi."

Every other girl present there was quiet. Hanayo covers her mouth to keep from speaking, and Rin grabs onto her arm, gripping it gently and listening closely. Honoka is watching intently, her eyes sparkling with curiosity as Umi and Kotori had moved to either side of her, paying close attention to the conversation they probably shouldn't be listening to. Nico and Maki were both doing their best not to pay attention but failing miserably as they watched the two girls.

Nozomi's eyes get watery as she lowers her hands back onto her clothes, clenching her fingers into the fabric her pants. She's still staring at Eli while she continues her speech.

"You became one of best friends so fast, I've had the best few months of my life getting to know you and learning that you're more than just the stern captain who would do anything for her Queen and her kingdom. You love everyone in your squad, you just had such an awkward way of expressing that. I think that's what drew me to you even more. "

"I really wanted to help you learn to express that love! I wanted to help support you and I am so happy that I was able to do that for you these past couple months. And I- well, I.." Nozomi blushes a bit, taking a moment to find the right words to finish her sentence. "I found myself falling pretty hard for you." she confesses with an embarrassed laugh. Eli can feel her eyes tearing up and the slight burn of her face. She knows she's blushing from Nozomi's words but she really didn't care in this moment.

"But," Nozomi looks down, wiping her eyes. "I understand if you don't feel the same. After learning everything about my past and how terrible I was to my kingdom, I really wouldn't blame you if you didn't want to continue being my friend or wanting to spend time with me. I would understand if you wanted to take me to A-Rise and keep Otonokizaka safe from whatever threat Ren made."

In the blink of an eye, Eli had taken two strides from the spot she had been glued to until she was right in front of the former Queen. She kneels down and lifts her hands to take Nozomi's into her own, squeezing them tightly. Nozomi doesn't hide the surprise from the sudden gesture, and Eli smiles at her.

"Nozomi, I told you before." The blonde starts. She needed to convey her feelings to Nozomi too. She needed her to know that Nozomi was her everything and that she didn't intend to lose her.

"It doesn't matter to me what your past was. You're not the selfish Queen you're making yourself out to be. You're the girl who was forced to run away for her own protection because you weren't given a choice. You're the girl who escaped to our kingdom for a new start. You're the first person to ever ask me for friendship and you're probably the best thing that's ever happened to me. " A small gasp is heard and a few eyes look over to Hanayo as she covered her face embarrassed. Ignoring it, Eli continues.

"I don't care that you were the Queen of Akiba. I don't care that you ran away, or that you had to hide it from me." Eli slowly lifts one of her hands to cup Nozomi's face gently as she speaks. "I only care that you and Nico had to shoulder all of this to yourselves. I can't imagine the pain and heartbreak you both went through just to get here; to get somewhere safe and start a new life. I care that I hadn't realized what you were trying to tell me sooner." Eli pauses, staring deeply into Nozomi's eyes.

Nozomi's lips begin to quiver and Eli's gaze gets softer as she brushes strands of hair behind Nozomi's ear.

"You're my best friend. I didn't know just how valuable having a friend was until you asked me to be yours. Nobody had ever approached me wanting to get to know me before. I had been focused on work for so long, I wasn't even sure if I was able to be your friend at first."

"But you showed me. You showed me how to accept someone into your heart. You helped me learn how important it is to have someone you can confide in. Someone who's more than just your work comrades. Someone more than the royalty you work for and someone more than just your family. It was all you."

"If I had to fake marry you again, I wouldn't hesitate. I'd marry you again and again, and again if it meant keeping you here by my side." Eli exhales shakily, taking in a small breath before she speaks again in a clear voice.

"A life without you beside me isn't a life I want to go back to, Nozomi. I'm not letting A-Rise take you or Nico back to Akiba. I'm not going to let them take the most important person in my life away from me that easily."

By now the knight had completely forgotten that they weren't the only ones present. She takes in the heavy blush on Nozomi's face as she finishes her confession. Eli can feel her nerves dwindling and relief washing through her body. She's still smiling softly, proud she was able to say everything she needed to.

Nozomi's tears finally fall and Eli's can feel her heart soar at the beautiful teary smile the violet haired girl gives her. She's quickly enveloped in a tight hug from Nozomi and she gasps lightly, steadying the two of them so they didn't topple backwards. The small smile on her lips is warm as Nozomi sobs into her, the crying girl's arms tightening around her neck. She wraps her arms around the other girl and stands up with her, supporting her in their tight embrace as she buries her face into Nozomi's hair. Even though they were surrounded by all of their friends, in that moment it felt like the two of them were the only ones in the world.

A small sob comes from across the gazebo and Hanayo lowers her hands, smiling fondly at the scene in front of her.

"Kayo-chin! Why are you crying?!" Rin asks, despite her own eyes being glossy with tears.

"T-there was just so much going on and seeing the captain accept Nozomi I just- I'm a bit overwhelmed!" she confesses, wiping a couple tears away.

Kotori giggles lightly, pulling a handkerchief out of her pocket and handing it to the chubbier girl.

"Here you go, Hanayo-chan." the Princess smiles fondly at her and Hanayo thanks her as she takes it, wiping her eyes wordlessly.

Maki and Umi are smiling small smiles as they watch their captain. She was so stern, so focused on protecting the Queen and the kingdom. She was protective, and very rarely smiled or participated in games with the others. It was thanks to Nozomi that Eli was able to open up and show everyone how she truly felt. She was able to take part in their games and in conversations not work related. In a way, Nozomi really was just what Eli had been missing in her life.

Eventually Nozomi pulls away from Eli, her hands lingering on the taller girl's shoulders. She sniffles a bit, unable to stop smiling. One of Eli's hands fall to her waist while she lifts the other one up her to wipe away the remaining tears that lingered on Nozomi's look away from one another and their eyes meet the many happy gazes they're receiving from their friends. Nozomi shyly looks from them back to Eli as the blonde speaks up.

"Everyone, we only have a few days. We're not going to let Akiba start a war, and we're certainly not letting them take away Nozomi and Nico. We need them to learn the truth about the situation and we need them to help stop Ren from starting a war."

There are a few cheers of agreement and Maki nods, agreeing wholeheartedly with Eli's statement.

"It's been a long day, so let's take the rest of the day off. We'll all regroup in the library tomorrow to begin brainstorming solutions and ideas on how we can stop Ren. Dinner will probably be ready soon so let's head to the dining hall." Eli looks over to Kotori, voicing a final question. "Princess, would it be alright if I asked you to relay our plan to the Queen?"

"Of course. I'll let her know right away!" She says with a smile, heading towards the exit. Honoka and Umi followed closely behind her, giving Eli and Nozomi small smiles before they exit with their Princess.

Hanayo and Rin are the next to leave, sensing that no more words needed to be said about everything that had happened. Maki moved to follow, only pausing when she realizes the remaining three still stood under the gazebo. She lingers on the pathway, turning around and watching as Nico doesn't budge from the spot she's in.

"Eli." Nico crosses her arms again and Eli stands a bit straighter, not used to being addressed in such a serious tone from the shorter girl. "If you ever hurt Nozomi, you answer to me."

Eli nods. "Yes ma'am."

"You better take care of her when I'm not around. If I find out she got hurt because you did something stupid, I'm kicking your ass. Got it?"

Eli smiles a bit nervously. "Y-yes ma'am."

Nico nods affirmatively, glad her point got across. Nozomi covers her mouth to stifle her giggles and Eli glances away in slight embarrassment. Nico then looks at Nozomi, who lowers her hand from her mouth. Wordlessly, she moves from Eli's side to stand in front of Nico. They share a small tight hug with each other, everything else that needed to be said between each other being done through the small gesture. Maki smiles slightly at the sight of it all. Nozomi's eye catches Maki's and she gives her a tiny wink. The younger girl blushes lightly, glancing away and pretending like she never saw a thing. Nozomi lets out another small laugh before closing her eyes and enjoying the moment.

After a short while Nico pulls away and says she'll see the both of them later. She walks towards the exit, glancing at Maki before leaving the gazebo. Maki silently waves to Eli and Nozomi, who give her a small wave back. The redhead is soon out of view, leaving the two girls alone. Nozomi had moved to follow but was stopped when Eli's hand wrapped gently around her wrist.

Nozomi looked back to Eli, her green eyes quickly finding Eli's blue eyes. Eli smiles softly as she see's the sparkle that resided in Nozomi's green iris' had returned. The taller girl steps closer to her companion, lifting her hand to gently cup Nozomi's cheek for the second time. Even though they were the only two there, Eli's voice is barely above a whisper when she speaks.

"I meant every word I said." Nozomi returns Eli's smile with a tired one of her own, lifting her hand to hold Eli's to her face. She nuzzles it gently, opening her eyes slowly and meeting Eli's loving gaze.

"I know." Her reply is just as quiet and Eli brushes her thumb gently against Nozomi's cheek.

Both of them are blushing lightly and all Eli can think about is kissing the girl in front of her. Her eyes are focused on Nozomi's lips and she leans forward slightly, not realizing Nozomi had been doing the same thing. Before long their noses touch and Nozomi's laugh is so quiet that Eli is sure that if everyone was still there, they wouldn't have heard it. She smiles and laughs lightly as well, the familiar scent of Nozomi washing over all her senses. They share one last glance and when Nozomi's eyelids shut, Eli's do the same as she finally closes the gap between them to seal their lips in a soft and loving kiss.

* * *

Not far down the path and in the castle,Maki was walking alongside Nico. Both of them silent, not having any words to say to one another. Maki glances at Nico, seeing her blank expression. She was clearly distracted when she didn't notice the suit of armor she nearly collided with. Maki grabs Nico's wrist, pulling her closer to the center of the hall. Nico mumbles a small thanks before pulling her arm from Maki's gentle hold. Maki sighs, twirling a bit of her hair and looking off to the side.

"What are you thinking about?" she voices her concern.

"How to beat A-Rise." Nico replies. "There's no way we'd be able to kill them. Even if we somehow managed to, Ren would probably start a war if they didn't return." Maki nods in agreement. From the sounds of it, that seemed exactly like something the current King of Akiba would do.

"So there's only one option left." Nico says, reaching her room. She turns to Maki, and Maki's throat goes dry from the serious look Nico gives her.

"I'm going to turn myself in." Nico announces. "I'll convince them that Nozomi has passed away and let them take me back to Akiba and face King Ren myself."

Maki's mouth falls open and she watched as the twintailed girl opens her bedroom door and closes it on her. She shakes her head quickly, repeating the words Nico had just uttered over and over. Did she even hear that right? There was no way she could have. Nico wouldn't turn herself in. She couldn't. She stares dumbly at the door before narrowing her eyes and gritting her teeth.

She wasn't going to let Nico throw her life away like this. Before she could stop herself, Maki grabbed the handle of the door and shoved it open with all her strength. Her fierce purple gaze glanced around the room and landed on Nico, who looked at Maki. Her eyes were wide and puffy around the edges while fresh tears began to fall from them again. Maki took two steps forward, shutting the door behind her.

Now it was her turn to show Nico just how important she was to Otonokizaka and her.


	12. I Love You

Hey there everyone! Finally, the long awaited second last chapter is here! A HUGE thank you to my beta reader/ editor and amazing friend pasdechat on tumblr who helped me immensely with typos and rewording parts of this chapter. It's possible that a few things still went missed but after the amount of editing this went through I really hope it's nothing too major;; Thank you for all the comments, reviews and views and please look forward to the final chapter and epilogue!

* * *

"I'm not letting you do that." Maki's voice is clear as she locks her gaze on Nico. She can hear the sharp intake of breath from the older girl who is now focusing solely on her. Maki takes a step further into the room, continuing to speak her mind while she still has Nico's attention.

"What do you hope to accomplish with this plan? According to A-Rise, you're only an accomplice. If you turn yourself in, A-Rise is only going to come back for Nozomi too. Then you won't be able to protect her and Ren will have the both of you right where he wants you."

"That won't happen." Nico replies immediately in a low voice. "Nozomi is under Eli's protection now. You heard that confession she made, it'll be up to her to keep Nozomi safe when I'm gone."

The impact the last three words of Nico's sentence left on Maki was like a sword thrust deep into her chest, each word pushing the blade further and further in. Her head was spinning as she watched Nico turn away from her to collect random possessions scattered throughout the room and slipping them into a sack. The red haired girl took a quick breath, gathering as much courage as she could to speak again.

"Nico, what if still she still needs you?" She asked quietly.

Nico doesn't hesitate to reply.

"She has Eli now. Eli will be there to comfort her and take care of her. She also has you and the rest of the squad. Nozomi will be alright and I'll be doing my final job as her knight." Nico looks away solemnly as she ties the sack with her belongings tightly, making sure it is closed and nothing would be lost. "Everything will be fine." She adds as a final comment.

Maki only stares as Nico slowly makes eye contact with her again. As vivid amethyst eyes peer into teary ruby ones, Maki finally figures it all out. Nico's true intentions are clear now and Maki feels a surge of confidence rush through her. This is it, the perfect opportunity to stop her. Grabbing the bull by the horns, Maki stands more confidently and speaks clearly to her partner.

"You're lying." Nico tenses and Maki steps forward, speaking more clearly. "You're not turning yourself in to protect Nozomi. You're turning yourself in because you're afraid you won't be needed here anymore. You think that you can do this one last big heroic deed and be remembered fondly for the sacrifice you made for Nozomi."

When Nico's lips tighten into a straight line Maki knows she hit the bullseye. Maki crosses her arms as she gazes at the other girl, watching as she slumps a bit and sighs.

"Fine. Maybe you're sort of right. Maybe I am leaving because Nozomi doesn't need just me anymore, but there's more to it than that." Nico confesses, carelessly dropping her bag to the floor. Maki watches as she moves to her bed, sitting down on it and avoiding Maki's eyes as she continues to speak.

"Maki-chan, I panicked." Nico admits, keeping her gaze away from the red head. "I panicked because Nozomi is literally the only person I have left. Everyone else I've ever cared about is either dead, missing, or dead and missing! I need to make sure that Nozomi, you, and everyone else won't end up that way too. Even if it means I have to leave; even if it means that I'll never see any of you again. I can't let anything happen to anyone else."

Nico looks over to Maki, noticing she hasn't moved a single step closer. She only stares at her as Nico continues to speak, voice low and upset.

"Yeah, turning myself in doesn't guarantee anything. Ren might still try to start something stupid and A-Rise will definitely come back for Nozomi, but this is the only shot I have. There's a chance that I can convince him that Nozomi is dead and if I can do that, then Otonokizaka will be safe. No one will have to face Ren's wrath."

Maki listens quietly to Nico, contemplating everything carefully. Her stomach twists in knots and butterflies flutter carelessly as she realizes that Nico doesn't care about what could happen to her. Nico doesn't care that she could die or that people might miss her. Nico truly is an amazing knight, putting not just Nozomi, but the whole kingdom of Otonokizaka above herself without giving it a second thought. It pains Maki to think that Nico lacks self worth despite how much she brags about her talents and how amazing she can be. With all of this in mind, Maki voices the only remaining question she can think of.

"Nico-chan, what about you? Are you really okay with all of this?"

Nico stands up slowly, turning herself to face Maki. She gives the red haired girl a crooked smile and Maki can feel her heart stopping from the sincerity in it.

"I'll be fine." she says earnestly. "Knowing that you, Nozomi, and everyone else will be okay will make it all worth it. Really, I'm just that selfless! They should call me Nico Nii the legend!"

It's that comment that finally breaks Maki completely. She might have been trying to cover it up with her little joke but Maki knew that Nico meant every word she said. She strides over to Nico, grabbing her by the shoulders, and looking desperately into her eyes.

"What about the people who care about you?!" She knows her voice is loud and the grip on Nico's shoulders is tight but she isn't sure how else to convey her feelings to Nico. Maki doesn't dare look away as she continues speaking.

"What about Nozomi, whose life started turning around the moment you came into it? What about Eli, who will never be able to forget the moment you saved both her and me from that attack on the castle? What about Honoka and Rin who have the most fun when you're there to join in with their shenanigans? What about Kotori, Hanayo, and Umi who have appreciated your help on more than one occasion and respect your opinions?" Maki's eyes are watery as she swallows a nervous lump in her throat.

"And what about me?" she says more quietly. "How do you think I'll feel knowing my partner is going somewhere I can't follow? Where I won't be able to help her and protect her like she has been doing for me all this time?"

"Maki-chan..." Nico speaks quietly, her eyes wide. "Maki-chan it'll be okay. You don't owe me anything. Everyone else will manage and I'm sure you'll get a new partner who will be just as skilled, maybe even better than me."

"I don't want another partner!" Maki states exasperatedly, pulling her hands from Nico's shoulders and nervously letting them fall to her sides. She speaks again in a calmer voice, loud enough for only the two of them to hear.

"I only want you, Nico-chan."

Nico's expression quickly becomes baffled, her eyebrows raising as a light blush dusted her cheeks. Maki began to internally panic, her face going bright red as the exact words she used replay over and over in her head.

"What was that?!" Nico asks perplexed as Maki lifts her hands up awkwardly, trying to find the best way to say what she means.

"I-it was... it was this!" Maki quickly gives up trying to explain herself and with the remaining adrenaline in her system she grabs Nico's face, pulling her close and capturing her lips in a fierce kiss.

Maki didn't plan on confessing to Nico that way. Her original plan involved it being a lot cooler, maybe after one of their sparring sessions or a busy day of work. There would be some playful conversation and then once the both of them laugh and fall silent, Maki would say it. She hadn't intended on kissing Nico or expressing her exact feelings at this very moment, but when Nico responds in kind without hesitating, throwing her arms around Maki's neck and pushing herself onto her tiptoes in order to get closer to Maki, the younger girl doesn't feel a single ounce of regret.

Maki can feel Nico's fingers tangling in her hair; hear the desperate, needy whimper that comes from her throat, taste the sweetness of her soft yet firm lips. Maki can feel herself becoming intoxicated the longer she kisses Nico and it is unlike anything she has ever imagined. The fluttering in her stomach and pounding in her chest went ignored as Maki kissed Nico more feverishly, afraid that if she stops the girl in her arms might just disappear. Eventually her lungs begin to burn from the lack of air and it was with reluctance that Maki pulls away, taking in deep breaths of air as she and Nico stare at one another, slightly dizzy in their post kiss moment.

A small silence passes between them and Maki presses her forehead gently against Nico's, speaking in a voice so quiet that only the two of them can hear.

If you think I'm just going to let you go so easily, you're wrong. Not after I've fallen for you."

There's a sharp intake of breath from Nico and Maki can feel her body relax. She doesn't stop the small smile that forms on her lips as she feels Nico press her forehead against her own. She watches as Nico closes her eyes, speaking in a quiet murmur.

"Maki-chan, I don't want to leave." She whispers. "I love it here. I love everything about this place. The castle is enormous, everyone is friendly and easy to talk to, I love waking up and knowing the day will be a good one the moment I see everyone."

Her eyes open and Maki watches as Nico pulls away, looking up directly at her as she continues to speak.

"And I love you!" Her voice is full of emotion and her hands grip tighter onto Maki's tunic, to ensure that this is real and Maki is truly listening to her. "I love working with you, I love teasing you, I love how you do that little hair twirl thing when you get flustered, and I love the way you sheath your sword and then re sheath it to make sure it's still there. I love pretty much everything about you Maki-chan."

"I-I love you too!" Maki exclaims only seconds after taking in everything Nico had said. "You can be a really big idiot sometimes. You're also super full of yourself, you're cocky, you're loud, and you can be one giant pain in the butt."

Maki only pauses to take in the confused stare Nico gives her but in a quiet voice she continues.

"But you're the idiot I'm in love with. I don't hate any of those things about you. I could listen to you talk for hours about anything and I'd still be interested because it's you talking." She looks down, avoiding the soft gaze Nico gave her.

"Sometimes I just think about holding your hand while you talk, or traveling out of the castle on a mission for the captain where we could camp out under the stars together. Sometimes I just see you happy and then I feel happy. It's- It's weird; it's new. It's all things I've never felt before but I'm glad that out of all the people I could have grown to love, it was you."

When she looks back to the girl in front of her, she's greeted with the widest smile she has ever seen on Nico's face. There's a shy laugh that comes from her as she grows a bit flustered, removing her hands from Maki to cover completely heated cheeks.

"Geeze, Maki-chan..!" Are the only words she can say before she gazes up to her, eyes glittering in the light that shines in from the window. The two of them are quiet for a moment and Nico slowly let her hands fall to her sides, her eyes never once leaving Maki's. They glance down briefly to her lips, asking a silent question to the taller girl.

Maki answers by leaning down and pressing her lips against Nico's for the second time, her thoughts going back to Nico and only Nico. As the two shared their second kiss, the both of them were oblivious to the door slowly closing and the silent giggle of a violet haired woman who had come to check up on them. Wordlessly she walks down the hallway to where her own partner waits, talking quietly with another guard and oblivious to the scene that her companion has just witnessed.

* * *

The following day everyone meets in front of the library as soon as their morning rounds and breakfast are finished. Kotori is the one to propose the idea of discussing and planning everything inside her secret study to ensure that no one would interrupt the small group as they plot ideas to keep Nozomi and Nico safe. Everyone agrees and Kotori leads the way to the private room, stopping in front of a large book case that stands by itself with very few books on it. Kotori only has to glance at Umi before she steps forward, walking over to the bookshelf and slowly pushing it forward, to reveal a fancy doorway hidden directly behind it. The long haired princess reaches up to her neck, lifting up a delicate silver chain that holds a small key as its pendant. She pulls the key from her neck and stepped towards the door, slipping it into the small lock and twisting. With a small click, the door is unlocked and Kotori pushes it open to reveal a cozy room, illuminated by the sunlight that creeps in through the beautiful floral stained glass windows. As each girl steps inside, they take a moment to admire the beauty of the secret room and the little touches Kotori has made to the room's decor adding to it's personality.

In the center of the room is a large stone table, surrounded by nine different extravagant chairs. Honoka leads Kotori over to largest chair, pulling it out slowly and smiling as she sits down. Honoka happily slips into the seat to her right while Umi gracefully seats herself on the other side. The three of them frequently visit this room and are comfortable in it's atmosphere. they watch the other six take in the decorations and smile as they admire the beauty of it all.

"This is incredible, Princess." Eli says, looking from the tapestries on the walls to Kotori. "Do you know what this room originally used to be?"

"From what I can tell, this was where the knights of the round table gathered." She answers with a smile. "The Otonokizaka records state that the knights disbanded after the fourth generation of Otonokizaka royalty, but it had been used as a storage room until I decided to take it over and make it my own personal getaway spot."

"Honoka and I didn't learn about this place until after we started living here in the castle." Umi adds. "Kotori did all of this by herself."

"It really does look incredible." Maki adds her own input, deciding to take a seat next to Umi after taking in her surroundings.

"This is also where the princess does a lot of her sewing." Hanayo says with a smile, taking the chair next to Kotori shyly. "I've only been inside it a couple times, but it's always amazing each time Kotori-chan invites me inside with her."

Soon the rest of the girls also take their seats; Rin and Nozomi take seats on either side of Hanayo while Eli sits between Nico and Maki. Once everyone is comfortable, Eli speaks again.

"We should start taking suggestions and begin planning out this mission." She begins, looking over to everyone. "Has anyone come up with any ideas yet?"

"I haven't come up with any solutions, but I do have a few questions." Umi says seriously. "Nozomi, Nico, I want to know everything you two know about A-Rise. I feel the more we know about them, the more we'll understand their motives."

Nico and Nozomi shared a glance and Nico crosses her arms, wracking her brain for things they may not have mentioned.

"Well, we've established that they're still in the same positions as when we left Akiba." She states, looking over to Nozomi for confirmation.

"That's right." Nozomi nods in agreement. "Captain Kira was close with my parents as well, but I'm not sure if there was more to their relationship than Captain and Royals. They were friendly, but if I had to pinpoint how friendly they were, it would probably be as friendly as Queen Minami is with Elichi."

Maki tilts her head back and lets her thoughts wander as she takes in the little information they have to go on. Honoka leans forward, putting her chin in her good hand and humming.

"Umi-chan, you said they came with no weapons yesterday too." Honoka points out. "I don't think the three of them really want to start anything. It's possible they're all only here because they were ordered to investigate it."

"That's what I was thinking too." Umi agrees, looking to Honoka. "It isn't bright for three knights to wander into another kingdoms castle and make threats like that either. I believe they may have deduced that it would have been a calm conversation. That or their true intentions were only to bring the message."

"Is it possible they didn't believe the claims that Nozomi-chan and Nico-chan were here though?" Hanayo asks quietly. "Their instructions may have been to just deliver the letter and if Nozomi-chan and Nico-chan really were here, they were to do as the letter instructed. Rin-chan, you saw them before they entered. Can you describe what they looked like?" Hanayo looks over to her friend curiously.

Rin hums a bit, crossing her arms and leaning back in her chair as she recalled A-Rise's entrance the day before.

"Bored. They looked like they really didn't expect much." She says, uncrossing her arms and looking to Eli. "Until they got to the end of the carpet that is. Then they looked pretty scary, hehe." Rin lets out a nervous laugh as she scratches the top of her head.

"And now we're here." Eli says with a frown. She places her elbows on the table and laces her fingers together, analyzing the information while resting her chin on top of her hands.

The group is silent thinking about every possible thing that could be said or done to persuade A-Rise to leave Otonokizaka empty handed. Maki's head is still rolled back and there is a small frown on her face as she considers different options. Rin looks between everyone before offering a weak suggestion.

"What if we tell them Nozomi-chan and Nico-chan died?" She asks hesitantly.

"That'd just be a cheap way out of it." Nico responds with a frown. "A-Rise won't believe that without seeing our bodies or receiving proof that the both of us are indeed dead."

"We could always pretend to be dead in that case." Nozomi says with a playful smile. "But if they were to touch us they'd know we're alive."

"Sorry Rin," Eli apologizes with a smile "It has given me an idea though. What if we tell them the two of you went missing?"

The group ponders Eli's suggestion before Kotori shakes her head.

"Then A-Rise would be traveling through all of Otonokizaka trying to find Nozomi-chan and Nico-chan. They'd be on an even longer search and King Ren might get impatient and start a war anyway."

"The princess is right." Maki says with a sigh, keeping her head back. "If we tell them Nozomi and Nico haven't returned, it'd just be avoiding the problem to begin with. It'd buy us time, but it'd also make them impatient and they might see through our bluff."

Honoka frowns slightly, looking up to the ceiling and voicing her opinion.

"I wish there was a way A-Rise would be willing to negotiate. They looked pretty beat, I don't think they want a war to happen."

An idea suddenly slaps Maki directly in the face and she sits upright, looking wide eyed at her peers and catching their attention from her sudden dramatic movement.

"That's it!" She says, her eyes landing on a surprised Honoka "Why didn't we think of this before!?"

"Maki-chan?" Nico looks at her with a raised eyebrow. Maki turns her attention over to Nozomi, her eyes still wide in excitement.

"Nozomi, you mentioned they were close with your parents right?" She asks quickly, waiting impatiently for Nozomi's answer.

"As close as any captain and royal might be at least." She replies with a shrug.

"Then there's no doubt that they respect you. You're their daughter," Maki says, excitement creeping into her voice. "There's got to be at least a slight chance that they'll hear you out and listen to the truth."

Nico's eyes light up and a smile creeps onto her face, quickly catching onto Maki's idea.

"That's right!" She declares, looking at Nozomi excitedly. "Think about it, A-Rise barely associated with Ren in all the time that he was the King and Queen's advisor. Sometimes I thought that the three of them saw themselves as higher in status than him since they only took direct orders from the King and Queen, while Ren had to take all orders from you, the Queen, and the King!"

Nozomi only quirks an eyebrow, giving it a bit more thought until Eli snaps her fingers, looking directly over to Maki with excitement that matches her's and Nico's.

"Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant!" Eli says. "Well done Honoka! Well done Maki!"

"Uhm- thank you?!" Honoka says, absolutely confused and unsure of what she was accepting the compliment for.

"I don't think we're all on the same page here." Umi says with a frown. "Let's say A-Rise humours us and decides to talk. What will happen if they listen to Nozomi?"

Maki looks over to everyone, leaning forward and beginning to explain herself.

"There's a good chance that if A-Rise listens to Nozomi and hears the complete truth, they'll back down. We could bring them to the castle and together all of us could brainstorm a way to stop Ren. There's a seriously good chance that we can persuade A-Rise to work with us and keep our countries at peace instead of following Ren's orders and arresting Nozomi and Nico!"

Understanding washes over the group and smiles begin forming on their faces.

"Maki-chan! You're a genius!" Rin announces excitedly.

"Honoka too. Your comment made me consider the idea." Maki says, smiling at the long ginger haired girl. Honoka laughs sheepishly, her own smile widening in return.

"I'm glad I could help!" She says with excitement. "Who knew we'd get a plan this fast! Now we have three days to plan out everything!"

"You can leave that to me." Eli declares, a triumphant smile on her face. She looks to her side and gazes at Nozomi's face, taking in the small smile that rests on her features. "What do you think, Nozomi?" She asks in a quieter voice. The violet haired girl gives it a bit of thought before smiling wider.

"I think this is our best shot. I'm positive that the three of them will listen to me as a final request."

Rin shouts loudly and stands, running excitedly from her chair over to Nozomi's and hugging her tightly from the side.

"We're gonna do it!" She cheered happily as Nozomi laughs. "We're gonna keep Nico-chan and Nozomi-can safe!"

"Yes. Yes we are." Eli confirms as her smile softens. She slowly stands, looking to her squad. "I think I'll relay this plan to the Queen. It should put some of her worries to rest."

"I'll join you Captain." Umi states, standing up. "Since we finished sooner than expected, we can all begin the rest of our daily duties."

"Good thinking Umi." Eli replies. "Unless the princess needs you, let's all disperse and get to work. Once I finish a plan for talking with A-Rise I'll have the Princess summon us all and we can go from there."

The rest of the squad agree to Ei's suggestion and both her and Umi leave the room, heading off to inform the Queen of the first steps of their plan. Once they've left, Nozomi looks over to Nico with a playful smile.

"You know I went to visit you last night Nicocchi." Nozomi says, watching the shorter girl stiffen.

"O-Oh yeah? What did you need me for?" She asks, glancing to the side and avoiding Nozomi's knowing smirk.

"I just wanted to check up on you and see if you were doing alright." She says coyly, glancing over to Maki who had quickly turned away from them the moment the conversation started. "I was a bit surprised to see that you weren't alone~"

The comment catches the other girls attention and they silently listen in on the conversation, watching as Maki begins turning bright red and Nico crosses her arms, sputtering out a reply in defence.

"W-Well Maki-chan came to see me too! And she just so happened to -uh.. to uh... to be there when I was crying and stuff." The blush on both of their faces said it all and Nozomi's playful smile turned into a very loving and happy one.

"I'm happy for you, Nicocchi. Maki-chan." She says. Maki glances over, making eye contact with Nozomi. She gives the redhead a playful wink before voicing a tiny warning. "Maki-chan you better be good to my Nicocchi."

"Yeah!" Rin quickly pipes in, a grin on her face as she stares at Nico. "And you take care of our Maki-chan, Nico-chan!"

The couple is embarrassed but they don't hide their smiles as their eyes meet and they voice their replies.

"Of course."

"N-Not to interrupt the moment, but I need to head to the stables now." Hanayo says apologetically. "Rin-chan, Maki-chan, will you both be helping me today?"

"You bet!" Rin says with a smile. "How about you Maki-chan?"

"I can help out. I don't have any duties until later." The red haired girl replies, standing up slowly and glancing to her partner. "Nico, will you be coming too?" As the black haired girl begins to contemplate it, Nozomi interrupts.

"Actually, is it okay if I borrow Nicocchi for a bit Maki-chan?" She asks. Maki nods slowly, not minding that Nozomi wants Nico to assist her. The younger trio then makes their exit, waving good bye to the remaining four girls.

"What's up?" Nico asks immediately, looking to her friend. Nozomi slowly lifts a tarot card from her pocket, revealing it face up on the table and sliding it towards her. Nico's eyes widen as the death card greets her and she immediately looks back to Nozomi, concern on her features.

"Is this a bad sign?" She asks immediately. Nozomi says nothing as Kotori and Honoka look over concerned.

"Is what a bad sign?" Kotori asks hesitantly.

"Nozomi did a reading of the situation and drew the death card." Nico answers quietly, her frown increasing. "I don't know what it means but it sounds ominous."

"It's not as bad as it might seem." Nozomi says quickly, wanting to reassure her friends. "Death can mean the end of one thing and the beginning of something new. It stands for change. The last time I drew this card was before Nicocchi and I left Akiba and it certainly was the end of something and the beginning of another." She idly picks up the card, staring at it and contemplating the possible outcomes that could come from their plan.

There's a small silence between the four remaining girls and Honoka speaks quietly.

"Does this mean our plan won't work?" Nozomi shakes her head.

"No. I have a high suspicion it means the opposite. I think everything will go exactly as we determined it might." Nozomi replies in a voice just as quiet. "Nicocchi, I have an idea but I'm going to need your help. Honoka-chan, Kotori-chan, I might need you two as well. It's only a suspicion but if my hunch about what the cards are telling me is true, then it'll be up to you three to help me."

Wordlessly the trio share small glances and nod. In the quiet of the small room Nozomi begins to explain her plan. The candles flicker and everything is absolutely still as the violet haired girl relays her ideas to the group. Honoka' eyes widen and she looks down, thinking deeply about the request given to her. Kotori has no words, placing her attention on Nico as she took in the suggestion. She has her arms crossed and is lost in thought, only voicing her feelings the moment Nozomi is done talking.

"Are you sure this will work?" She asks hesitantly. Nozomi shrugs.

"I can't be one hundred percent certain, it's only a suspicion after all." She replies.

"So there's no guarantee it'll work then." Honoka states with a frown.

"Actually, I think the odds of it working are higher than any other option." the ash haired princess says with a small smile. "The only problem with this solution is the outcome it leaves Nozomi-chan with. We won't be able to tell what happens until it does, all we can do is speculate new things and hope that it turns out it our favour."

Nozomi smiles and nods, gazing at the three of them as she leans back in her chair.

"All that's left for me to do is tell Elichi." Nozomi says with a sigh. Nico frowns a bit.

"You mean you didn't discuss this with her first?"

"The timing was never right." Nozomi's frown returns as she stares up at the ceiling, thinking about her plan. "I haven't even figured out how to even bring up the idea."

"She's not going to let any of this happen without her being right by your side, Nozomi." Nico says seriously. "If it were anything else I'd insist that I be apart of it too but-" Her voice trails off as she looks at the table. "I'm not sure if I could even do that."

The violet haired girl shakes her head, sitting up and looking directly at Nico with soft eyes.

"You're a knight of the Otonokizaka kingdom now Nicocchi. This is something I have to do by myself." She gives the girls a tiny smile as she continues, her voice as soft as her eyes had been. "Besides I need you to stay here. I need you three to do something for me if everything turns out the way I expect it to."

Before Nozomi can voice that task the door opens. Their conversation comes to a halt as each girl looks over to the door, seeing that Umi and Eli have returned. Nozomi smiles slightly, standing and smiling apologetically to the three of them before looking over to Eli and Umi, both of them wearing satisfied smiles on their faces.

"What did mother say?" Kotori asks, putting on her best smile and pushing all thoughts of the previous conversation to the back of her mind.

"The Queen was pleased with our fast verdict. She supports the idea one hundred percent." Eli's eyes are glistening as she speaks, walking directly over to Nozomi and smiling wider at her partner as she holds a hand out to her. "I intend to plan out how we'll meet with A-Rise later after Nozomi and I finish our daily jobs."

Nozomi smiles as she takes Eli's hand, entwining their fingers before looking to the rest of the group.

"Looks like duty calls." She says with a laugh. "I'll see you later Nicocchi. Kotori-chan, Honoka-chan."

The two of them exit the room, leaving a heavy atmosphere around three of the girls who were left without any clues as to what Nozomi was going to say to them. Nico looks over to Kotori and Honoka, noticing their troubled expressions and sighing.

"If I know Nozomi as well as I do, I can only think of one thing that she would need us to do." She ignores Umi's confused stare as Honoka and Kotori focus all their attention on her. She exhales slowly, shaking her head and crossing her arms.

"What is it?" Honoka inquires, standing up from her chair and anticipating Nico's answer. Said girl looked over to Honoka, locking eyes with her and voicing her thoughts.

"She wants us to make sure that the plan goes exactly as she said it would." Nico doesn't say another word about it, standing up and excusing herself from the room. Umi frowned worriedly, looking over to Kotori and Honoka for more answers.

"Is something the matter?" she asks them with concern. Kotori says nothing as she stares at the door and Honoka speaks with hesitance.

"Actually Umi-chan, I think you might be able to help us more than anyone else."

Umi silently takes a seat as Honoka begins explaining the previous conversation to her, not leaving out any details and relaying Nozomi's plan to the navy haired girl. She processes all the information carefully and by the time Honoka's finished speaking, her eyes are heavy, lips twisting into a large frown.

"Nozomi-chan said it's only likely if everything goes as planned, but what do you think Umi-chan?" Kotori asks quietly, looking over to her long haired lover. Umi contemplates her answer carefully, going over everything once more before exhaling softly.

"I think all we can do is trust Nozomi and see to it that her plan really does go as she said it would. There isn't anything more that we can do but that."

The three of them sit in the heavy silence, silently agreeing that no matter what, they would see to it that everything went the way it was supposed to.

* * *

The rest of the day goes by quickly and the squad now has some free time to themselves. Eli joins Nozomi on her daily garden visit, leaning right up against the violet haired girl as she enjoys the scenery and recharges among the energy the garden gives her. They sit in the comfortable silence of the gazebo, Eli's fingers linked together with Nozomi's, their hands resting comfortably between each other. It was still too early for the fireflies to arrive but Eli knows if they wait long enough, the glowing bugs will reveal themselves and add to the relaxing atmosphere.

"Hey, Elichi?" Nozomi breaks the silence, looking next to her and smiling at her partner. Eli hums, letting Nozomi know she is listening and turning her gaze onto the other girl.

"This garden has seen a lot of things with us, hasn't it?" There's a light smile on her face and Eli returns it with one of her own, thinking back to every moment she shared in the garden with Nozomi.

"It has." She agreed, squeezing Nozomi's hand gently. "We've come a long way from where we started."

Nozomi lets out an airy laugh, leaning against Eli and letting out a satisfied hum.

"Did you think we'd end up here?" She asks curiously as Eli rests her head on top of Nozomi's.

"Not at all." She answers honestly, closing her eyes. She listens to Nozomi's quiet breathing and smiles more to herself, enjoying the moment as she continues speaking. "But I'm glad we did."

"Me too." Nozomi says quietly, a tinge of worry in her voice. "I don't want this to end."

Eli's eyes open slowly and she tilts her head slightly to plant a tiny reassuring kiss on the top of Nozomi's head.

"It won't." She mumbles. "Everything is going to be okay."

Nozomi is quiet as she closes her eyes, snuggling herself even closer to Eli.

"The cards say something else is going to might happen." She says after a moment, opening her eyes and lifting herself from Eli to look at her. Eli's gaze becomes serious and she waits for Nozomi to explain.

"I did a reading early this morning. What it meant has been on my mind all day." She begins, pulling out the death card and showing it to Eli. Her eyes widen and she looks to Nozomi with heavy concern. Nozomi smiles reassuringly to try and lift Eli's spirits.

"The death card is a good sign Elichi. Don't worry about that." Eli's eyes soften and Nozomi slips the card away into her pocket. "The last time I drew this card was before Nicocchi and I made our way here. Whatever happens with A-Rise, it's going to be big Elichi. It's going to be life changing and there might be nothing we can do but go with what fate has decided."

She can feel Eli's grip on her hand tighten and she tries to offer another reassuring smile when Eli begins to frown slightly, her eyebrows furrowing as she thinks of the different possibilities that could happen during their confrontation with A-Rise. She doesn't look at Nozomi as she speaks, her voice quiet.

"Are you saying there could be a price to our happiness?"

Nozomi's eyes soften and she leans back into Eli, shaking her head.

"Not at all." She mumbles. "I'm saying we need to be ready to expect whatever will come our way."

There's a hidden meaning to Nozomi's words but Eli says nothing as their moment is interrupted by Mika and Fumiko, who enter the gazebo with quite a few watering cans, not even a little bit surprised to see Eli and Nozomi.

"Evening Nozomi! Captain!" Mika greets with a smile. "Don't mind us, we're just resting these here as we begin watering the plants."

"We'll try not to get in the way of your romantic alone time~" Fumiko says in a sing song voice. Eli blushes faintly and Nozomi laughs lightly, amused by the comment. "You know it's sorta weird, whenever I see the two of you so happy I kinda just feel happy myself. Maybe it has something to do with you being married?" She laughs as she contemplates the idea before Mika shoves a watering can in her hand and pushes her off into the direction of some unwatered foliage.

Fumiko's observation ends up sticking with Eli and she glances down to her hand, observing the ring that rests comfortably on her finger. To the rest of the castle, Nozomi and Eli are still married and it was all for political reasons. Only her squad and the Queen know the truth and it feels almost awkward to think of it as nothing more than an act. A sudden epiphany comes to Eli and she sits straighter, a wide smile forming on her lips as the idea pieces itself together inside her mind. Nozomi stirs and sits up, looking at Eli questioningly.

"What are you grinning about?" There's amusement in Nozomi's voice as she smiles, raising her eyebrow and watching Eli look over to Mika and Fumiko to make sure they were out of earshot. After confirming they were, she turns her attention back to Nozomi and speaks in a loud whisper

"Why don't we actually get married?"

Eli has to hold back a small chuckle at Nozomi's bewildered expression and she reaches over to grasp Nozomi's other hand so that she has her full attention.

"We could have a real wedding and have the Queen bless a real union between the two of us! We could celebrate with everyone and we could journey to my home and you could meet my family and-" Eli pauses her rambling when soft lips touch her cheek and her face heats up as she watches Nozomi pull away, a broad grin on her face.

"Let's do it." She says with excitement, squeezing Eli's hands. Her eyes sparkle brightly in that way Eli loves so much. She isn't sure if it is a result of the happiness she feels or the way Nozomi responds without a second thought but she doesn't care. Eli laughs lightly as she recalls that fateful night months ago and she asks Nozomi a final question with an amused smile.

"You're just going to accept my proposal without even considering the consequences?" Nozomi laughs, leaning forward again and smiling more playfully at Eli.

"Well, I've learned from the best."

The two of them laugh together, Eli letting go of Nozomi's hands and pulling her into a tight embrace that Nozomi happily returns. They sit like that for a brief moment before Eli straightens, tugging Nozomi up with her and suggesting they go inform the Queen of their decision. With plenty of excitement overflowing from the two of them they dash off hand in hand towards the castle.

As they reach the Queen's sitting room Eli knocks urgently on the door. Her other hand continues to hold Nozomi's tightly as the Queen's voice grants them permission to enter. Eli opens the door quietly, stepping inside with Nozomi. The door shuts behind them and the two are surprised to find that Kotori and Honoka are there as well, enjoying the evening with the Queen and reading a book together. Kotori closes the book and offers them a smile.

"Is everything alright, Captain?" The Queen asks, putting her own book down on the small table next to her chair.

"Everything is good, your majesty." Eli replies. "Erm, well, more than good. Everything is great." Eli's smile is contagious and Honoka can't help but smile along with her.

"What is it that brought you here then?" Queen Minami raises an eyebrow at the two of them. Eli glances to Nozomi who gives her a nod and a reassuring smile. The blonde continues to grin as she clears her throat and looks back to the Queen.

"We came here to ask for your blessing." Eli says seriously, her hand gently squeezing Nozomi's. "We would like to be married as soon as possible. For real. We don't want to pretend anymore. We want to make it official. We want to make it legitimate."

The Queen's eyes widen slightly as Kotori gasps, bringing her hands to her mouth and letting the book fall from her lap to the floor. Honoka gapes a bit, unsure if she has heard correctly. Eli doesn't let their shocked reactions sway her as she continues to speak.

"I know it's very late and it may be short notice to have a proper ceremony of any sort, but we don't mind. The both of us want to be married more than anything." Eli turns to Nozomi, a loving smile on her face. "I've spent a very long time alone, not caring about anything other than work. Since I've met Nozomi my life has changed completely and I really can't imagine it without her by my side. I know marrying her doesn't change her status as the Queen of Akiba and it probably won't stop A-Rise from trying to arrest her, but I don't care. All I care about is being able to spend the rest of my life married to the woman who owns my heart."

Nozomi squeezes Eli's hands and returns her loving smile as a blush creeps onto her cheeks. Eli can feel her spirits lifting and she turns her attention back to the royals only to see that Kotori's eyes are starting to brim with tears and the Queen is watching them with a warm and loving smile. Honoka beams brightly, her eyes sparkling with excitement. After a moment of silence, the Queen adjusts herself in her seat, looking fondly at Nozomi and Eli as she gives her answer.

"I would love nothing more than to bless your marriage, Captain. I'm afraid I don't have the required things to perform your marriage right at this moment." She frowns a bit. "Would a wedding tomorrow morning be alright?" Before Eli and Nozomi can voice their reply, Kotori cuts in.

"No need! We'll go to the church right now!" She says excitedly, standing up from her chair. "I'm very good friends with Christina, a devoted member of the church. If I ask I'm sure she would be happy to marry you tonight!"

The couple share a look between each other and Nozomi moves from Eli to Kotori, grabbing her hands tightly and looking at her with a bright smile.

"Kotori, you really are without a doubt the greatest princess in all the realms." Kotori laughs, squeezing Nozomi's hands and beaming at her. "Thank you."

"It's the least I can do!" She replies happily. "Come on, let's get you both changed and to the church this instant!" She begins pulling Nozomi to the door excitedly.

"Eh? Changed?!" Nozomi questions, sharing a look with Eli. Kotori freezes in her steps, turning and looking between the two of them incredulously.

"Wait, you wanted to get married in your work tunics?!" She exclaims and both Eli and Nozomi blush in embarrassment.

"I-it was a very spontaneous decision, Princess." Eli says in their defence. "We didn't really think about changing our clothes."

"Well you're going to!" Kotori says sternly. "I've got something you can wear Nozomi-chan. Eli-chan, go change into your formal attire! Honoka-chan!" At the sound of her name, Honoka stands more alert and her attention is on Kotori."Go get Hanayo-chan and get her to help you prepare Eli-chan's horse!"

"Yes ma'am!" the ginger haired girl heads to the door, opening it up and dashing out to find Hanayo.

"Eli-chan, Nozomi-chan and I will meet you at the stables!" Nozomi and Eli lock eyes briefly before Kotori pulls her away excitedly. The knight turns to the Queen, bowing and excusing herself before exiting the sitting room.

As swiftly as she can, Eli returns to her room and changes as quickly as possible. She throws off her tunic letting it fall in a pile on the floor as she slips into her familiar formal pants and jacket, fastening it closed and taking a quick look at herself in the mirror. She sees her reflection, similar to the one that appeared on that warm spring day and Eli feels a strange sense of deja vu. She smiles at her reflection, comparing the feelings she had then to the ones she has now. Back then Eli hadn't felt anything but nerves and a slight hint of pride knowing the kingdom would be that much safer with the union between her and Nozomi. She can still vividly recall just how beautiful Nozomi looked as she walked towards her, hair braided with small flowers weaved through the long purple strands and the tiny blush that rested on her cheeks after the Queen had presented them to the staff who had witnessed the wedding. She remembers how they nervously held onto each others hands and the short yet sweet kiss they shared to seal their fake marriage. Eli may have forgotten about the kiss part of the wedding then but now it was one of the only things on her mind.

After quickly smoothing down her clothes, Eli does a brief once over to make sure she looks presentable before heading to the door. She exits the room, walking at a fast pace towards the stables, not wanting to waste another moment of the evening. The adrenaline coursing through her is unlike anything she had ever felt before and she ends up pushing open the door with more force than necessary. She begins sprinting towards the stables as soon as they come into view, the dim light of the setting sun giving an orange glow to the sky and reflecting off of the small building that houses the horses. Eli quickly notices the open doors and the soft glow of the lanterns inside, hoping she hasn't kept anybody waiting long.

Once she enters she is greeted by the sight of her squad, all of them standing patiently and looking over to her with knowing smiles. She freezes in her spot at the door, surprised to see all of them there. She looks between everyone before smiling slightly.

"Word spreads too fast between all of you." She chuckles lightly, walking into the stable and closer to her friends.

"It certainly does. That's what helps make us part of the best squadron in the kingdom." Umi says with a smile. She steps over to her and Eli takes notice of the sash she held. "This is a gift from Kotori. It was meant to be a part of a new outfit she had wanted to sew you for your birthday this year, but she instructed me to give it to you now." She holds it open and Eli bows her head a bit, allowing Umi to slip the beautiful deep blue sash onto her.

As expected, it not only fits her perfectly but it suits her well. She looks down as Umi adjusts the material, her smile never leaving her face. Rin and Honoka applaud in approval as they voice their opinion on it.

"The Captain looks fit for a wedding now, doesn't she Honoka-chan~?"

"She certainly does Rin-chan! Fit enough to marry a Queen~!"

The group laughs lightly and Eli glances around only to notice that three of them were missing.

"I know where Nozomi and Kotori are, but I'm surprised Nico isn't here." She comments. Maki opens her mouth to respond before the familiar voice of the raven haired girl cuts them off.

"That's because I got to help prepare Nozomi for your spontaneous wedding." Eli whips her head around to see Nico standing just behind her with a small smirk on her face.

"Does that mean Kotori-chan is finished?" Honoka asks, and Nico nods.

"We tried to get a cloak on her but it didn't work the way we wanted it to. So instead-" She pauses, holding up a black piece of fabric. "We'll be blindfolding Eli."

"What?!" Eli exclaims, but before she can protest more both Umi and Maki have grabbed her arms, preventing her from escaping the blindfold. Eli struggles briefly before the fabric is wrapped around her eyes and quickly tied behind her head.

"Perfect. Eli, can you see this?" Nico begins waving a hand in front of her face and Eli frowns at the fact she is clueless to what she was doing.

"No. No I can't." She grumbles, pouting a bit. Maki and Umi let go of her and Eli doesn't bother to remove the blindfold, knowing that if she tries, the will only force it back on her.

"Perfect. Before I forget, give me your ring." Eli frowns and Nico answers the question she didn't voice.

"You can't exactly slip the rings on each others fingers if you're wearing them." Eli only nods, reluctantly grabbing the ring from her finger and handing it to Nico. The red eyed girl grins in satisfaction before calling out to Kotori. "Okay Princess! The Captain is blindfolded and ready!"

The sound of Nozomi's laughter reaches Eli's ears and her frown is soon gone, her heart rate climbing. There are a few gasps from their friends and Eli knows that it has to be due to Nozomi's appearance.

"Sorry about that Captain, but seeing the bride in her gown before getting married is absolutely forbidden." Kotori says apologetically. "But your sash looks great on you! You look just like a prince~!"

"Now that you mention it," Maki glances over Eli, before turning to the ash haired girl. "Did you do that on purpose?" When Kotori only laughs nervously Eli gives a reassuring smile in the direction of Kotori's voice.

"I don't mind it at all Princess. What about you Nozomi?" Eli asks, tilting her head a bit to locate the sound of Nozomi's voice.

"I have to agree." Eli's smile grows a bit and she turns her head to the side, happy to know that Nozomi had decided to stand next to her. "You look very dashing, Elicchi."

"Thank you Nozomi." Eli gives her an apologetic smile. "I'd love to return the compliment but it looks like that will need to wait until we get to the church. Which we should do. But I'll need help getting onto my horse." Eli's voice had become a mumble and Nozomi giggles.

"Here, I'll guide you." Nozomi says, taking Eli's hand and leading her to her horse. Eli smiles as her hand is enveloped in Nozomi's and she carefully follows the sound of her voice as they approach the dark brown steed.

After a few embarrassing attempts, Eli finally eventually manages to slip her foot into the stirrup, slipping into the saddle of her horse as Nozomi guides her movements. Nozomi easily pulled herself up afterward, arms winding around Eli's front and holding securely. Maki and Nico had saddled up their horses as well and Maki offers to guide Eli and Nozomi to the church since Eli is blindfolded and Nozomi would have a hard time seeing past the taller blonde. Nico chooses to ride along with them using the opportunity to get out of the castle walls as an excuse to ride Kuro. The rest decide to walk alongside them, Umi in front and Honoka slightly behind Kotori while Hanayo and Rin follow not too far behind.

Once the redhead was ready, she took the reins of Eli's horse in one hand and began guiding them out. The small group follows them closely while talking excitedly. Once they reached the front courtyard, Kotori calls up to Hideko asking her to open the gate. She thanks her kindly when the other girl happily complies and the gate begins to open up for them. Eli swallows a nervous lump in her throat as they move out of the castle walls and into the streets of town. Her heartbeat is in her ears as the moment she has been waiting for becomes closer and closer.

They soon come to a stop, and Maki announces that they have arrived. Nozomi slides off the horse first, helping Eli down not long afterwards. Their touch lingers a bit before they reluctantly let each others hands go, as Eli is pulled inside the church with Kotori guiding her up the steps and into the quiet building.

It didn't take the two of them long to find Christina, a curly haired blonde girl who smiles brightly upon seeing Kotori. She happily agrees to marry Eli and Nozomi just like Kotori expected. It doesn't take the younger woman long to set up the table with the wine goblets, the rings Nico had confiscated from the soon to be wed couple, and a few newly lit candles to add more light to the room. Kotori positions Eli a few feet away from the table before leaving to make sure that Nozomi is almost ready. Honoka, Hanayo and Rin each take seats on the front bench as they excitedly waited for the ceremony to begin.

The blindfold around Eli's eyes is loosened and she blinks, taking a moment to adjust to the church's lighting. Maki and Umi stand in front of her, the blindfold in Maki's hands and small smiles on both of their lips. Eli returns their smiles with a nervous one of her own, and Umi laughs softly.

"You've come quite a long way, Captain." Umi begins. "Half a year ago, none of us would have expected we'd be assisting you with a spontaneous wedding ceremony." Eli chuckles lightly.

"If you told me I would have been getting married half a year ago I would have punished you with extra work for thinking of something so far fetched." She laughs again, reflecting on the past.

"That just proves Umi's point even more." Maki says with fondness. "We're really happy for you, Eli."

Eli looks between her two right hand girls before she hesitantly puts both of her hands on their shoulders.

"Thank you both. You're both great people, amazing knights, and I'm grateful to have you both working alongside me." She says with a smile before quickly enveloping the two unsuspecting girls into a hug. Umi and Maki stiffen at the surprise embrace but soon melt into it, returning the hug and laughing to themselves. The sound of footsteps approaching catches their attention and Kotori smiles warmly at the three of them as they pull away from one another.

"It's time!" She beams. Umi gives Eli one last reassuring smile before walking over to Kotori, linking their arms together and leading her to the seat next to the other three girls. Maki nods to Eli before following the other two, sitting down next to Umi.

The room is still before the quiet melody of a harp begins and Eli looks down the small pathway between the benches to the entrance. She inhales sharply when Nozomi and Nico come into view, her eyes widening in awe and the sight leaving her breathless. Nozomi's arm is linked with Nico's and in her free hand was a small bouquet of flowers -lilies possibly- that had been picked from the garden. The dress she wore was an off white colour with very fluttery sleeves and little to no major details. It was a very simple gown, but it looked absolutely beautiful on her. Her hair was let down from her hair ties, a few wavy strands draping over her shoulders and on the top of her head was a tiny silver and blue diadem that Eli suspected Kotori had added as a final touch. Her light blue gaze met Nozomi's emerald green and the tears welled up as Nozomi closes the distance between them. Being blindfolded during the whole ride had been worth it and Eli knows she will never forget this moment for as long as she lives.

When Nozomi and Nico reach Eli, the black haired girl looks to her violet haired friend. She quickly adjusts part of her dress, brushing off some non existent dust from Nozomi's shoulder. As she's about to step back and let Nozomi go to Eli, the other girl pulls her back in for a quick and tight hug. Nico smiles to herself, hugging her friend back tightly and returning the embrace. When they pull apart, Nico takes Nozomi's bouquet, making a small comment on how she's wasted enough time and that Eli is waiting. She looks to Eli, the only words she wants to say being conveyed through her gaze. Eli smiles warmly at her, and Nico returns it with one of her own before she steps away to sit down on the end of the bench next to Maki. She flashes the redhead a small grin as she holds the bouquet tightly in her hands and Maki shakes her head, a small smile on her lips.

Nozomi takes a moment to wipe a stray tear from her eyes, laughing lightly at Nico's comment before looking to Eli. The captain holds out her arm with a loving smile and Nozomi doesn't hesitate to link her own arm with the blonde's. They step closer to the table and the small ceremony begins when Eli turns to face Nozomi, taking the shorter girl's hands in her own. Before Christina begins speaking, Eli takes the opportunity to whisper quietly to her love.

"You look very beautiful, Nozomi." Another small laugh escapes Nozomi's lips.

"That sounds a little familiar, Elichi." She whispers and the blonde laughs lightly as she squeezes Nozomi's hands gently.

The ceremony proceeds exactly the way it had in the spring. Christina say a few words, Eli and Nozomi make their vows to one another, different twists and fun words being added into their sentences. In front of only their friends, the two of them vow to love and cherish one another, in sickness and in health, til death do they part. Honoka and Umi each hold one of Kotori's hands in their own and Rin lets Hanayo's head fall onto her shoulder as they watch. Maki shyly takes Nico's hand halfway through Eli's vows and the two of them are content to sit like that throughout the rest of the ceremony. Both Hanayo and Kotori are in tears as the two of them slip the rings on each others fingers with confidence and soon the knight and her maiden were sipping the wine from the fancy goblets provided for them. After placing their cups down and sharing a small glance with Christina, she gives them a small smile.

"You may now kiss the bride." she says happily as she closes her bible.

And this time Eli doesn't hesitate to do just that.

* * *

The next couple days are spent in complete bliss and Eli is unable to remember a time when she felt happier. The plan for confronting A-Rise is plotted out carefully and the day of the awaited meeting is finally upon the group. Four girls had exited the castle walls in different disguises and at different times, entering the Inn that A-Rise had been staying at.

Umi sits near the unlit fireplace, hair tied into a messy braid as she makes marks on a parchment with quill and ink. Off to the side talking with the innkeeper's young and excitable daughter is Rin, who is listening to the very talkative girl's detailed stories. Nico and Maki sit at a table hidden in the corner, both of them disguised in the brown tunics that Nozomi and Nico had worn during their journey to Otonokizaka, pretending to be a young peasant couple. Nico wears her hair in a low ponytail, the strands draping over her shoulder while Maki's hair is tied in a tiny ponytail on at the top of her head. The two casually drink some tea and pretend to focus on one another while taking turns stealing glances around the large dining area.

Eli's plan involves meeting with A-Rise directly in the dining room. Her and Nozomi will arrive last and as soon as Nozomi is given the chance, she will ask A-Rise the important question of whether they would hear the truth or not. If the latter is the result, the small group will be ready to bring out their weapons and offer to persuade A Rise to hear Nozomi out. Respectable knights from the neighbouring kingdom wouldn't dare cause a scene in the center of an inn and even if the plan isn't exactly perfect, Eli is confident that everything will work out in their favour.

"How long have we been here?" Nico asks silently, tracing her finger around the rim of her cup as her other hand lays comfortably underneath Maki's. Maki shrugs, placing her chin in her free hand and looking at Nico through half lidded eyes.

"About fifteen minutes." She mumbles. "They'll be here any moment now."

"I hope so. I'm getting antsy." Nico spares a glance to the door, frowning when it doesn't open. "I swear to god if those two are late because they were busy being lovey dovey I'm going to smack Nozomi hard in the arm."

"That's your Queen you're talking about." Maki comments with an amused smile. Nico scoffs.

"Doesn't give her an excuse to be late for her own meetings." The raven haired girl grumbles, letting her hand fall away from her tea and resting gently on the table. "Plus, I'm her best friend. Best friends have hitting rights when their friends decide to do stupid things like be late for an important meeting regarding their own life."

"Relax Nico." Maki says quietly, her eyes landing on the three girls that had descended from the stairs just a few moments ago. "There's three of the people we've been waiting for." She nods over to them and Nico glances over slowly, careful not keeping her eyes on them for long.

"Would you say they're getting ready to leave?" Nico asks quietly. Maki shakes her head, giving Nico her full attention and leaning closer. Nico copies the move and the two rest their foreheads together, getting into the act of the young couple they were supposed to be portraying.

"No." Maki breaths out her reply. "They're sitting down at the long table Umi's at."

When Nico spares another glance Umi's way she can see the three Akiba knights sitting there out of uniform and completely immersed in a casual conversation between one another. She lets out a relieved sigh and takes a moment to glance at Rin and Umi, both of whom are occupied with their own acts while sparing looks toward one another. None of them dared to openly glance towards A-Rise out of fear that their covers would be blown too soon. The door opens and the greeting bell jingles to signal people entering the quiet inn. Maki glances to the door, only nodding her head slightly at Nico to confirm that it is exactly who they were waiting for. Nico doesn't dare turn to look, focusing instead on Maki, her hand twisting upward and gripping onto Maki's gently.

Eli enters first, glancing around the room with serious eyes. Nozomi follows shortly after with her traveling cloak's hood up as she also scans the room. The Innkeeper is surprised to see the Captain of the Queen's guards in his small establishment and he greets the two of them with enthusiasm.

"Welcome Captain!" He says in a booming voice. "What can I do for you today?"

"Good afternoon, Sir." Eli says, giving him a small smile. "I'm sorry, there isn't anything I need from you at this moment. I'm here to meet with a few of your guests. I appreciate your offer though." After confirming that her squad is in place, her eyes land on the group of three. For acting purposes Eli grabs Nozomi's arm in a soft yet firm grip and leads her towards the table where A-Rise waits.

As Eli approaches, Tsubasa stands from her seat, causing Erena and Anju to stand from theirs as well. The two captains greet each other with a nod and Eli is the first to speak.

"A-Rise." She greets in a low voice. "I hope you don't mind the slight change in our compromise." Tsubasa's eyebrow raises slightly and Eli elaborates.

"I've only brought one of the requested girls with me. On the way back to the castle it seems that Yazawa Nico was in an accident." Tsubasa's eyebrow lowers and she shrugs, cutting in and speaking in a calm voice.

"It can't be helped. People die and life goes on."

Eli hadn't meant to imply that Nico had died but she goes along with the declaration, nodding in agreement.

"That it does." She says, gesturing to Nozomi. "But I have Tojo Nozomi, as promised." Once her introduction is made Nozomi lifts her hands, pulling her hood down and revealing that it was indeed her. A Rise is suddenly more alert, eagerly gazing forward and Eli is surprised to see the three of them smiling in relief as Nozomi reveals herself to them.

"You look like you've matured quite a bit, your Majesty." Anju says. Nozomi can't help but return the smile with a small one of her own.

"Thank you, Anju. Being on the run has made me reflect on quite a bit." She replies quietly.

"I'm sorry that things have turned out this way, your Majesty." Erena says with a frown. "We have our orders and we really can't do anything but take this with a grain of salt."

"I understand Erena. It isn't your fault." Erena's frown is soon gone as she stares at Nozomi with a warm gaze.

The group is quiet and Nozomi takes this as her chance, speaking in a voice quiet enough for only the group to hear.

"Before you arrest me and take me back to Ren, I'd like to request that the three of you listen to my story. If not for me, then as a final favour for my father." Three pairs of eyes waver and Tsubasa doesn't hesitate to agree.

"Of course, your Majesty." She smiles lightly. Both Eli and Nozomi relax and the violet haired girl smiles warmly to the shorter brown haired Captain.

"Shall we do it in the privacy of our room, or would you prefer to relay the story here?" Erena asks.

"Your room will do fine. It's not a story that should be heard by all." Nozomi says seriously. She turns to Eli and Eli glances at her, their eyes locking and Nozomi giving her a small smile.

"Captain Ayase, it's only fair that you hear this story too. The Queen needs to hear the finer details of it all and who better to relay it to her than the Captain of her guards. Would that be alright, Captain Kira?" Nozomi turns her attention to Tsubasa and the short haired girl nods in agreement.

"Of course." She smiles at Eli and soon the small group make their way to the stairs, Eli trailing behind them and locking eyes with Umi. Umi nods in understanding and the moment Eli is out of sight, she waves the three disguised knights over to relay a new plan to them.

Eli and Nozomi follow the three Akiba knights to the end of the hallway and into a large room, complete with a table, three beds, and two water basins. It is large and roomy and Eli notices that all of their gear is packed up nicely and waiting next to the door. She ignores it for the moment, focusing back on the task at hand when Erena pulls out a chair for Nozomi, gesturing for her to sit while Tsubasa and Anju take their own seats across from her. Eli shuts the door completely behind her and stands next to Nozomi's chair, keeping her hands locked behind her as Erena chooses to stand next to Tsubasa.

"You can begin whenever you're ready, your Majesty." Tsubasa instructs with a kind smile. "We'll listen until you've said everything you need to."

"Thank you, Captain." Nozomi's replies. She exhales a shaky, uneasy breath before she begins to tell the three knights across from her the truth of what happened the day her parents were murdered and the reason she ran away.

Eli keeps her face as stern and expressionless as possible as she hears the story for a second time. Her knuckles turn white from the amount of force she uses to keep her hands clasped together behind her and it takes an incredible amount of self control for her to stay that way throughout the duration of the story. She keeps her eyes focused on the A-Rise leader, whose eye darken dangerously while Nozomi speaks. Her two right hands wore equally serious expressions, Erena's frown increasing as the story reaches its climax and Anju unable to keep her eyes on Nozomi as pain flashes across her features.

"After that Nicocchi and I made our way to Otonokizaka and with the help of my godmother we started a new life here. Nobody but her and the Princess know the truth." Nozomi concludes her story and looks down at the table, avoiding the stares of the Akiba trio.

"I know it's a lot to take in and I know you might not believe my story, but all of it is the truth. I could never kill my own parents, even if they weren't there for me a lot. I still loved them."

There's a small pause after Nozomi finishes, closing her mouth and letting her lips form a tight line. It was the moment of truth now and Eli keeps all of her senses on alert, ready for the first sign of any trouble. A-Rise is quiet for a bit longer as they process the whole story, and eventually Tsubasa speaks.

"Thank you for telling us the truth, your Majesty." There's a small smile as she leans forward. "I'm glad it was exactly as it had been told to us all those nights ago."

Nozomi blinks confused before Anju nods.

"I guess it's our turn to share our story with you, your Majesty." She grins a bit at her Queen and Erena lets out a low chuckle.

"The truth is, we're not here to arrest you." She begins the story, smirking a bit as she sees the visible surprise on both Nozomi and Eli's face.

"You're... not?" Nozomi says hesitantly, raising an eyebrow.

"Of course not." Tsubasa says, leaning back and crossing her arms on her chest. "We're A-Rise, the Tojo family's most skilled task force. We don't take orders from someone who takes the crown for himself and claims he's the only candidate fit for it."

Eli's eyebrows furrow and Nozomi frowns deeply.

"What happened after I fled?" She asks with concern. Anju and Erena share a gaze as Tsubasa uncrosses her arms, sitting up properly in her chair and staring directly at Nozomi.

"To sum it up, all the hard work your parents did to keep the kingdom as great as it had been has crumbled under the hands of Ren. Crime rates have increased by almost four times the amount as before because he's ordered every able bodied person in the castle to hunt down both you and Yazawa. He's been ignoring the people and keeping the castle gates closed with tight security. A whole village along the river was raided and not a single survivor was left, and the King's only response was to abandon the village and deal with it later." Tsubasa's voice is low and angry and her rage begins to rub off onto the rest of the girls in the room.

"We saw the damage first hand, your majesty." Erena continues. "Ren has been neglecting the kingdom because he's so obsessed with capturing you so that you don't reclaim the crown and your title. The kingdom has been suffering and we had the unfortunate task of searching every inch of it in hopes of finding you."

"We needed to find you because you are our only hope, your Majesty." It's Anju who speaks this time, a silent plea in her voice as she looks at Nozomi. "The moment we were deployed to find you, the three of us vowed we wouldn't bring you back to turn you in. We need you to save the kingdom and we need you to fix the damage Ren has done."

"Traveling the country wasn't all that bad, because we held our own rallies. We've recruited the people into helping us too." Tsubasa adds. "We've come up with a plan to take back the kingdom, but without you there isn't any way we can successfully save Akiba and it's people. You're the key to our plan being successful, your Majesty." She stands from her chair and Anju does the same.

At the exact same moment, the three Akiba knights bow in front of Nozomi and Eli, Tsubasa's voice desperate as she speaks again.

"Please help us save the country we love. The country your parents loved. We can't do this without assistance from you."

Nozomi glances back to Eli and their surprised gazes meet. Eli stays silent, unsure of what answer to give Nozomi and Nozomi turns back to the bowing girls.

"Please raise your heads." Nozomi requests. The girls do as they are told and their gazes land on Eli.

"Captain Ayase, I'm sorry that we couldn't relay the plan to you or your Queen." Tsubasa says apologetically. "We've known Queen Minami was our Queen's godmother for quite a long time. We know everything about the relationship her Majesty's mother had with Queen Minami and we suspected that if her Majesty truly was here, Queen Minami might not give her up unless we went along with Ren's bogus idea." Eli can't help but smirk, enjoying the fact A-Rise seemed to hate Ren as much as she did.

"I don't blame you. It was a smart tactic and you had one of my most elite knights believing our kingdom was in some very serious danger." Eli unclasps her hands from behind her, letting them fall to her sides. "I believe this means we as a group are on the same page."

Erena's eyebrow raises at Eli's comment and Anju speaks suddenly, her eyes on Nozomi's hands and a coy smile on her lips.

"Would it have anything to do with the ring you're wearing, your Majesty?" She asks with a hint of playfulness, immediately attracting Tsubasa and Erena's full attention. Nozomi blushes lightly and slips her hands underneath the table.

"Well, that's part of it?" She says in a questioning tone. The three of them wait for her to elaborate and Nozomi blushes a bit more as she talks.

"Part of our plan started with the Captain and I being wed so that my name would change and if anyone were to ask for it, they would learn I was the Captain's wife and I would simply be known as that."

"So it was an arranged marriage?" Erena asks quickly, her eyes eager for more answers.

"It started out that way." Nozomi responds, smiling softly. "But fate had something else in mind." Nozomi turns to Eli again, a small smile on her face that Eli returned. She stepped forward, placing her hand comfortingly on Nozomi's shoulder. Nozomi lifted her own hand, resting it on top of Eli's and looking back to A-Rise, who all wore fond smiles.

"Elichi and I made the marriage official and together with our friends we hoped we could get you to listen to us and sway you from arresting me." She keeps her hand on top of Eli's, her smile widening. "So far everything seems to be working out the way we hoped."

"I agree." Eli says, looking from Nozomi to A-Rise. "If there is anything Otonokizaka can do to help your kingdom and it's situation, I won't hesitate to inform the Queen and see if anything can be arranged."

A-Rise is quiet for a moment, taking in the offer before Tsubasa shakes her head.

"It's a tempting offer, but there is no point dragging your kingdom into our civil affairs. We don't need any reason for Ren to issue a legitimate war declaration on your lovely kingdom." She says seriously.

"You've done a great job keeping our Queen safe. We will forever be grateful for that."

Eli can feel the atmosphere in the room swiftly changing as Tsubasa looks apologetically at Nozomi.

"Your Majesty, I really do wish we could think of another way to save Akiba, but we're running out of time. Each day the kingdom gets worse under Ren's order and we're not sure how much longer the people will stand for it."

Nozomi pulls her hand away from Eli's before standing, as if she was prepared for what A-Rise was going to say.

"You need me to go back with you, don't you." It's more of a statement than a question and Tsubasa smiles sadly at Nozomi and Eli

"That's right. We need you to help us overthrow Ren and take back the crown that's rightfully yours."

Eli waits with baited breath for Nozomi's answer and she isn't surprised when the words leave Nozomi's lips after only a small moment of contemplation.

"I'll do it."

Erena and Anju both sigh relieved and Tsubasa walks over to Nozomi.

"Thank you, your Majesty." she says earnestly. "I know it's going to be difficult going back, but we wouldn't object if your wife decided to tag along and assist us."

Eli has a hopeful look in her gaze and both her and Nozomi turn to each other. Eli is about to speak but Nozomi cuts her off, interrupting her from whatever she intends to say.

"You can't." Nozomi says hesitantly, a frown forming on her face. "No matter how much I want that to happen, it isn't possible." There's a pang in the captain's chest and she shakes her head, desperately coming up with an idea off the top of her head to sway Nozomi.

"I'll make Umi the temporary Captain. We'll go to Akiba, we'll get your crown back and then I'll be with you the whole time as you restore Akiba to its former glory." Eli takes Nozomi's hands in hers, hoping that her suggestion will convince her to change her mind.

"That could take weeks! Months!" Nozomi exclaims, staying true to her decision. "Yes, you're my wife and that technically makes you the lord of my kingdom, but the people don't know that and they won't care. The only people who know that is everyone here, and more importantly you are the Captain of Otonokizaka's forces! You have duties and responsibilities here, I can't selfishly bring you to Akiba just because I don't want to be alone."

The two of them fall silent and A-Rise takes this as their cue to silently excuse themselves and wait for their Queen outside. They slowly slip on their travel cloaks before quietly grabbing their supplies and getting themselves prepared for the long journey ahead, which left Nozomi and Eli alone in the large room.

"Nozomi, I can't let you leave. Please, don't go. Don't go without me." The blonde pleads, gripping Nozomi's hands even tighter. Nozomi smiles sadly, pulling one of her hands out of Eli's and lifting it to gently cup her face. Eli leans into the touch, holding Nozomi's hand there and knowing exactly what her answer will be.

"We knew something like this would happen Elichi. The cards had prepared us for it." Her voice is a quiet whisper and tears threaten to fall from her eyes. "If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be making the choice to save Akiba right now. Your sense of duty to Otonokizaka has inspired me to do my best for my own kingdom. The moment I have done everything I need to will be the moment I make my journey back here. Back to Otonokizaka, back to all of our friends, and back to you." She gently brushes her thumb across Eli's cheek and Eli can only close her eyes, keeping Nozomi's hand pressed against her face. She knows it's impossible to change Nozomi's mind and the knight opens her eyes to look at Nozomi.

"What if something goes wrong? What if I never see you again?" Her voice cracks and she can feel her tears threatening to fall as her heart slowly breaks at the thought of never being able to see her Nozomi again. "Nozomi, I don't think I can handle that. I can't-"

"Shhh." Nozomi glides her hand off of Eli's cheek and presses two fingers to Eli's lips, shushing her completely.

"I'll do whatever it takes to come back to you as fast as possible. I promise." She removes her hand, lowering it and keeping her eyes on Eli's face as she gives the blonde a more reassuring smile. She slowly envelopes Eli into a hug and the blonde wraps her arms tightly around Nozomi. They stand there in the silent embrace, not caring about anything but each other. When the two pull away, Eli brushes a bit of Nozomi's hair behind her ear and takes a good look at her face.

"All I can do is have faith in you." She mumbles quietly. "Do the best you can, Nozomi. I'll be waiting as patiently as I can for your return." Nozomi's eyes glisten with tears and she pulls Eli down to seal their lips in one last, bittersweet kiss.

The two pull away, taking each others hands and head down the steps of the Inn towards the exit. With a quick scan around the room it appears that the group that arrived before them were no longer present. Eli is silent as she follows Nozomi out of the Inn, surprised to find Umi, Maki and Rin waiting patiently for them.

"A-Rise are busy preparing their horses. Did the talk go well?" Umi asks, knowing by their expressions that something is amiss. When Eli remains quiet, Nozomi speaks for the both of them.

"Yes. The talk went exactly as we had hoped. A-Rise had completely different intentions from the start and we came to the best conclusion we could." She gives Umi a reassuring smile before continuing in a clear voice.

"My kingdom has been suffering since I had to leave. Everything is spiralling downward and A-Rise needs me to help them save the people from Ren's tyranny." Umi, Rin and Maki tense and they know what Nozomi is about to say before she can even voice it.

"Are you going by yourself?! What about Nico-chan?" Rin asks quietly, glancing over to where Nico stood near Nozomi's horse.

Eli hadn't noticed it there before but when she saw that only Maki's horse was there, she could only assume Nico had been instructed to prepare it for Nozomi. She bites the inside of her cheek to distract herself.

"Nicocchi will only be in danger if she comes. I'll be going by myself." Maki and Umi's eyes fall on Eli as she looks away with a pained expression.

"Is this really the best solution?" Umi asks quietly. "Are you really sure about this, Nozomi?"

"Absolutely." The violet haired girl doesn't hesitate to answer. "I can't run from my kingdom forever and it's time I begin my first and final duties as the Queen. Once everything is safe, I'll do my best to get back here and come home." She sends a meaningful glance toward Eli before continuing. "To all of you."

Warm smiles are shared between the small group and Rin is the first to move, hugging Nozomi tightly and wishing her good luck with her task. Umi is next, allowing Nozomi to pull her into a small hug and letting her know she has complete faith in her ability to take back her kingdom. Maki doesn't say anything as she embraces Nozomi, only pulling away when Eli announces that A-Rise is waiting. The trio watch as Eli leads Nozomi to Nico and her horse, watching Eli double check the buckskin mare to make sure she is saddled properly and fit for the journey. Nico and Nozomi shared one last embrace before Nozomi pulls away. She faces Eli and the two of them can only stare at one another in silence. Eli knows that is she says anything, it will only make this moment more painful. She tries to put all of her feelings into the shared look, hoping that Nozomi will understand.. Nozomi mounts her horse and once she is ready, Eli gathers the reins and leads her into the pathway. Nico follows, stepping over to where Maki, Umi, and Rin stand and watching as Eli takes Nozomi directly to where A-Rise is waiting.

"Do you have everything you need, your Majesty?" Tsubasa asks as she adjusts her seat on the saddle of her horse.

"I do." Nozomi confirms. "I'm as ready as I'll ever be."

"Let's not keep Akiba waiting any longer then." The brown haired captain replies, smiling towards Eli. "Take care, Captain Ayase. We'll be in touch with your kingdom the moment we succeed."

"Please." Eli's voice masks any hint of sadness she feels. She offers one final look to Nozomi, hoping to hide the waver in her smile. "Take care, Nozomi."

"You too, Elichi." Nozomi replies quietly. Eli takes a few steps back, keeping her hands firmly to her sides as Nozomi encourages her horse forward, closer to the Akiba knights. Eli watches in a pained silence as the woman she loves begins to slowly walk away from her, creating a small distance between them.

Before Nozomi is out of earshot, she turns around, her eyes urgently locking on Eli's and her horse stopping quite suddenly. A spark of hope rises in Eli's chest as Nozomi smiles lovingly towards her, saying the only words left to be said between them.

"I love you, Elichi!" She half shouts. The sadness Eli has been feeling quickly begins to melt away and she laughs to herself, cupping her hands around her mouth shouting her reply.

"I love you too, Nozomi! I'll be waiting!"

There's a small laugh from Nozomi before she turns away, encouraging her horse to pick up speed. Before long the horses began to fade into the distance and Eli finds herself unable to look away even as they become mere specks in the distance. The blonde finally lets her mask crumble, hot tears beginning to stream down her face as she watches the person she loves most venture off to complete a task that no one is certain will even be successful.

When a warm hand suddenly envelopes Eli's, she takes the moment to spare a glance to her side where Nico stands, watching the horses as well. Her own tears fall silently and she looks up to Eli, a determined spark in her gaze.

"All we can do is hope for her safe return." She says, sniffling lightly. Eli lets out a small, sad laugh, nodding in agreement.

"You're right." She replies, not hiding the anguish from her voice. "Come on. Let's go home."

Hand in hand, the two people closest to the Akiba Queen turn and walk back to the small group that waits for them, their hearts heavy but their faith strong as they silently vow to do their best and look forward to that fateful day when Nozomi will return to them.


	13. Kotori's Coronation

AN: Happy Birthday Eli :')! I can't believe I actually got this finished by your birthday but with amazing help from pasdechat we managed to get this done in time~!

Hey everyone! This is it! The final chapter to The Knight and The Maiden and the conclusion of my first ever ongoing fanfiction. There is still the epilogue but after that this story is officially complete.

Thank you everyone for reading, reviews, bookmarks and most importantly thank you for sticking around on this really fun adventure! Just by reviews and asks I've got I've received so many nice words, I've made people happy and I've achieved my goal in making people smile with my own writing (also cry and gotten people frustrated with my cliff hangers [im only slightly sorry for those]) and that alone makes me really happy.

Thank you all again and I hope you enjoy this second last chapter (:

* * *

It was a warm spring day in late April. It had been about a year since Nozomi had come into Eli's life and the blonde still missed her dearly.

Just before the Princess' birthday back in September an Akiba raven had made its way to the castle with a rolled up parchment attached tightly to its leg. Rin had discovered it circling above the castle gate and whistled for it to come to her before she gathered the entire squad as well as Hanayo and Kotori before taking it to the Queen. The older woman allowed everyone into her study as she had unraveled the telegram and read out the announcement notice that was sent to them.

The parchment had declared the glorious return of Queen Nozomi and spoke in brief details about the journey she had made to protect herself from Ren until she was ready to take the crown back and bring the kingdom back to its former glory. It extended thanks to Otonokizaka and it's people for keeping Nozomi safe during that rough time and at the bottom in Nozomi's handwriting was a small message for them all.

"I'm okay. Don't worry about me, I'll return as soon as I can."

That day both Nico and Eli were the happiest they had felt in weeks. They knew Nozomi was okay and it made the time apart from her much easier than before.

After that Eli had Nico promoted. The raven haired girl became another right hand knight for her and she began working alongside Maki rather than under her. Nico proved herself to be more than capable of carrying out each of her duties and even if she gloated about it for two weeks afterward, nobody really minded. Nico was happy and a happy Nico was a good Nico.

After that the months flew by and now Eli found herself here, breathing heavily and disarming a rather frustrated Nico. Nico had jokingly challenged the blonde during lunch to a quick spar and Eli decided to humour her, agreeing to the challenge and taking it quite seriously. Only Maki chose to watch how the spar would play out while everyone else began to decorate the ballroom and get the castle set up for the guests that would be arriving tomorrow morning. Maki let out a sigh as she leaned against the training hut, watching Eli smirk a triumphantly and Nico begrudgingly grab her sword from the ground.

"W-well of course you'd win. That's expected." Nico grumbled as she sheathed her blade. "You're the Captain after all. I knew you'd win."

Eli chuckled slightly, sheathing her sword and nodding.

"Of course."

"I told you you'd lose." Maki comments on the side. "That's what you get for challenging the Captain."

"Hey!" Nico glares at her, crossing her arms and frowning. "You're my girlfriend. Aren't you supposed to be supporting me?!"

"Not when you decide to do stupid things."

Eli laughs again as Nico pouts in Maki's direction.

"Well I'd like to see you hold your ground for as long as I did while sparring against the captain!" Nico declares, walking over to her. Maki shakes her head and pushes herself off of the training hut to meet her halfway.

"No thanks. I might be skilled but I'm nowhere near the Captain's level yet."

"What?! You totally are. Don't be so modest Maki-chan." Nico's tone becomes more playful as she nudges her with a small grin. "You tied with me after all, remember? You've definitely gotten better since then."

"I agree." Eli adds in, approaching them with a fond smile. "Maki would make a fine Captain one day at the rate she improves."

Maki doesn't hide her blush and she mumbles a small thank you to Eli while Nico grins, nodding in agreement with the blonde. Once the three of them are ready they make their way inside the castle and towards the ballroom where they intend to help out the rest of their friends with the decorations.

They enter the ballroom together and are greeted by an energetic Rin, who is busy carrying a large amount of candle sticks from one side of the room to another. Maki makes her way over r quickly, offering to help her and taking half of the pile from her. Kotori soon adds her own greeting, waving for Nico and Eli the walk over and receive their own instructions.

"Umi-chan and Honoka-chan have brought the tables here and we have a small stage set up for the musicians over there." Kotori says, gesturing over to where a few castle workers sweep and mop the floor. "They should be on their way back with the thrones to rest over there but when they do, I think I'll let them have a break and it would be great if you two could put the thrones in position and help with the other heavier objects."

"Of course Princess." Eli says with a smile. "We don't mind."

Right on cue, both Umi and Honoka enter with two very heavy looking chairs. Eli and Nico move over to them immediately, taking the heavy seats from them and allowing their arms to rest. Umi and Honoka make their way to Kotori and the three of them discuss the next few details and touches they might have to work on while Eli and Nico make sure both heavy chairs are placed in the correct spots Kotori had shown them before. The two of them shared a quick grin before Hanayo rushes into the room, looking around wide eyed and shouting loudly.

"BIG NEWS!" Her voice echoes throughout the whole ballroom as she catches the attention of everyone there.

"Kayo-chin?! Are you okay!?" Rin's voice is laced with concern as she runs over to her heavily breathing friend, putting a hand on her back and rubbing it soothingly as she takes a deep breath.

"T-This is big news! Really big news!" She says through heavy breaths, leaning against her friend for more support as Rin continues to rub her back. The rest of the squad hurry over to her, concern etched on their features as the brunette inhales deeply before gathering her words.

"Take your time Hanayo, just breathe and then tell us what's going on." Maki says in a soft voice, looking worriedly at her friend.

"T-THERE IS NO TIME!" Hanayo suddenly shouts, startling everyone and standing straighter. Her eyes widen in shock as she surprised even herself and she mumbles a quick apology before calmly breathing in and out before she speaks again.

"I-I was coming back from the kitchens w-when I ran into Mika. She had just swapped at gate duty with Hideko and told me she had just let in a carriage with guests for the Princess' coronation!" Hanayo speaks between breaths, a hand on her chest to try to calm herself and get her breathing even again.

"Guests? Already?! Nobody is scheduled to arrive until the day of." Umi says with a frown. "Who could it possibly be?"

"T-That was my reaction too!" Hanayo adds, looking wide eyed at Umi. "B-But that wasn't for long because when Mika described the carriage I-I had find you all immediately!"

"And what did the carriage look like, Hanayo-chan?" Kotori asks softly. By this time Hanayo had finally caught her breath and she looks seriously at all of them before announcing the awaited final details.

"The carriage has Akiba's sigil and flags! It's the exact same carriage King Ren used when he arrived for the Summer solstice festival!"

Items drop to the ground with a clatter as everyone locks eyes on Hanayo. Their breathing hitches before everyone unanimously shouts one name.

"NOZOMI!"

Eli can't wrap her head around it all. The surprise guest being Nozomi sounded so unlikely when they hadn't heard a single thing since September, but now here they were and the possibility of Nozomi being there in the castle was very real. She was consumed by disbelief that the moment she was waiting for was almost upon her and she watches as Nico takes two large strides until she is in front of Hanayo, reaching up to grip her shoulders tightly and startling her.

"Hanayo, are you absolutely positive it's Akiba's?!" Her tone is hopeful and Hanayo nods swiftly.

"Yes! Mika described the exact mountain sigil on the flag that matches the Akiba kingdoms!"

"Did you see them!? Did Mika see them?!" Nico asks again, her grip tightening. "Can they confirm that Nozomi is here!?"

"I-I don't know about Mika, but I know I didn't!" Hanayo squeaks out.

"We gotta find out!" Nico shouts, letting go of Hanayo and turning to Eli, who seemed to finally recover from the shock. Her gaze was serious but everyone could see that glimmer of hope that hid in her icy blue iris.

"EVERYONE! PLEASE CONTINUE THE CORONATION PREPARATION WITHOUT US! MY SQUAD, HANAYO, PRINCESS, TO THE COURTROOM!" She shouts immediately, sprinting past castle workers to the open ballroom doors that Hanayo had entered through only moments before. Nico was the next to move, making a mad dash after Eli while the rest of the squad f follow as closely as possible.

Eli was the first to enter the courtroom, her eyes wide and breathing laboured as she whips her head around, seeing nothing but the occasional worker and empty thrones. Nico enters next, mimicking Eli and frowning deeply when she sees no signs of anybody in the courtroom. Eli is unable to stop her hopes from rising as she turns to Nico, several ideas spinning inside her head. As her and Nico caught their breaths, the rest of their group enter, panting heavily from the sudden sprints.

"N-Nobody's here!" Rin says, a hint of disappointment in her voice.

"The castle is huge, t-they could be anywhere by now!" Honoka adds.

Maki's eyes landed on Eli as the older girl began formulating a plan with that bright mind of hers. She points a finger at Eli, catching a few girls attention as she spoke.

"I know that look! You have a plan!" She accuses as Eli nods her head.

"We're splitting up!" Eli announces. "Rin, you're the fastest. You cover the castle grounds! Honoka, you and Kotori search the library! Hanayo, check the stables to see if Nozomi's horse is there and in its stall. Maki, Umi, you to check every single hallway in this castle. Don't leave any unlocked room unchecked!"

Everyone nods at they're given instructions.

"What about me!?" Nico says suddenly. Eli locks gazes with her.

"We're going directly to the Queen." She says seriously "Disperse! We'll meet back here if none of us have any luck!"

"And if we find her?!" Umi asks.

"Find a horn and blow it loudly, then head straight to the courtroom!"

With the final instructions given everyone split up, dashing back into the hallways and running to their duties. Honoka and Rin shout Nozomi's name as they run down the hallways, Kotori is laughing as she trails after Honoka, and Hanayo can't stop beaming as she dashes towards the closest exit to get to the stables. Maki and Umi are both very serious, Umi making her way up a staircase as Maki opens the first door she comes close to and inspecting the room. Eli and Nico sprint as fast as they can down the hallways towards the staircase that would lead them to the Queen's study.

Nico groans halfway up the staircase, unable to keep up her speed as they climb higher and higher up the stairs. Eli huffs out loud breaths, her legs beginning to feel that burning sensation from her non stop sprinting. By the time the two of them reach the top of the steps, Nico is wheezing and stumbling away from the stairs while Eli slows herself into a walk. Her heart is in her throat as she begins thinking about just who could be behind that door. She holds her hand out shakily, curling her fingers in a fist and preparing to knock.

Butterflies swarm and Eli feels a nervous bead of sweat slowly trail down her face as she musters up the last bit of courage to knock loudly on the door. Her heart beats faster and faster as the moment she has been waiting for is just behind this door, and her breath hitches when the Queen announces permission to enter. Without hesitating, Eli grabs the handle of the door and pushes it open slowly.

"Excuse us, your Majesty." Eli says immediately, stepping inside and Nico following.

Both of them inhale sharp breaths of air and Eli can feel herself going tight lipped. Nico pales quickly at the sight, unprepared for the scene in front of her.

Standing in front of the Queen are the three familiar figures of A-Rise. Erena sports a flashy set of expensive armour, fancy details etched into various parts of its golden plates. Anju wears only her white travel tunic, her hair tied in a low ponytail and a small smile slowly forming its way on her lips as she looks over to Eli and Nico. In the center of both of them stands Tsubasa, adorned in a princely white outfit and a royal red cape around her shoulders. She smiles warmly at the sight of the two knights and Eli has to forcefully keep her gaze on the three of them, not daring to look away.

"Ah, so it looks like the early guest arrival reached you Captain." The Queen says with a smile. "Allow me to introduce you to Akiba's new Queen, Kira Tsubasa, as well as the captain of her guards, Toudou Erena and her advisor, Yuuki Anju. "

At the announcement both Eli and Nico quickly bow their heads to Tsubasa. Eli's mind is a huge blur of thoughts. If Tsubasa was the Queen now, what happened to Nozomi? Did she even come along on the trip for Kotori's coronation? Eli's mind wasn't in a good spot and she feels her heart sink the various ways that Nozomi could have lost her title flashing through her mind.

"It's a pleasure to see you, your majesty." Nico says, lifting her head. "As well as your advisor and the new Captain."

"You too, Yazawa Nico." Tsubasa smiles more. "It looks like I misunderstood Captain Ayase when she explained what happened to you the last time we met. I'm glad to see that you're alive and well."

"T-Thank you your majesty." Nico replies. She nudges Eli a bit to get her to lift her head and continues speaking on Eli's behalf. "We had heard guests arrived early and so we immediately made our way here to welcome you."

It was a very bad lie but Eli could only nod to back it up. The Queen nods, not oblivious to the true reason the both of them happen to be there. Eli finally finds her voice and clears her throat, speaking for herself for the first time since they entered the room.

"We're pleased to see you arrived safely. Was your journey here alright?"

"It was. We decided to try out the new boat travel system that has begun on the Grand River, and it only took us about a week to arrive in Otonokizaka territory, and about maybe day and a half to get here." Tsubasa has a coy smile on her lips as she watches Eli nod.

"That is quite the difference between traveling on horseback." Eli muses. Her lips close in a tight line again as her mind wanders.

She has so many questions for the trio but all her thoughts linger on negative options. Options that she isn't sure she will be able to handle if they are voiced out loud. She can feel the negative thoughts beginning to consume her and Nico sends a worried glance between her and the new royal. Just as Eli feels her heart shattering one last time with all hope being drained from her, Tsubasa speaks again with a hint of amusement in her voice.

"There was someone else with us today, but she said she had other business to attend to the moment we entered the castle. When I asked where she was off to, all she said was that the garden was very beautiful this time of year and she was looking forward to seeing the flower arrangements."

And just like that Eli's energy was back, her faith restored and her eyes widening. That should've been the first place she looked; it was their special spot after all. Erena smiles lightly and Anju giggles quietly as Nico quickly speaks, a broad smile on her lips.

"Well, it was a pleasure to see you again, your Majesty." She says to Tsubasa, excitement creeping in her voice as she begins pushing Eli back towards the door. "You'll have to excuse the captain and I, we have a few coronation details to get back to and – and uh, well we can't let anything fall behind!" Eli nods quickly, bringing herself back down to earth and bowing quickly. Nico followed suit, and the Queen chuckled lightly to herself.

"On your way then, ladies."

The two of them exit the room, closing the door softly behind them before sprinting down the corridor and to the stairs at top speed.

"THE GARDEN! WE SHOULD'VE KNOWN!" Nico laughs, hopping down the last two step and landing firmly on the ground. Eli was only paces ahead, exhaling a laugh of her own.

Eli's lungs are burning but her drive pushes her forward, her feet landing with heavy steps as she keeps her fast pace up. She rounds each corner at a dangerously high speed, letting her feet skid along the carpeted floors and ignoring the increasing heat of the friction on her heels. Nico isn't even attempting to be graceful, slamming into walls and dodging everything in her way. She shouts towards every castle worker in their line of sight, warning them to get out of the way as the two of them sprint from the tower that had the Queen's study towards their destination. The two of them dash past many confused guards and maids but nothing else matters in that moment. It had been far too long and Eli wasn't going to waste any more moments without her beloved.

The garden entrance is only feet away and Eli's breaking point is close. Sweat is running down her face but all she can think about is the warm and loving smile and bright emerald green eyes only meters away. Her thoughts linger on all her memories of Nozomi, the way she talked, her bubbly laugh, her long violet hair, and the warmth she radiated late at night when Eli fell asleep next to her. She spent so many sleepless nights in the long months without her and knowing she was so close; knowing she was back and that she wouldn't have to suffer like that ever again drove her to push herself beyond her limits and sprint faster.

A door suddenly flings open in front of both her and Nico, revealing a desperate looking Maki. There isn't enough time for Nico shout for her to get out of the way and the two of them collide painfully, causing Maki and Nico to topple directly to the floor. Eli quickly comes to a stop, glancing back at the groaning pile of red and black hair on the floor.

"A-ARE YOU ALRIGHT?!" She shouts breathlessly and Nico pushes herself up.

"F-FINE!" She looks down to a severely confused Maki and gives her a quick kiss on the nose. "Sorry Maki-chan, I'll make it up to you later!" She pushes herself off Maki, shoving the red head further into the floor before she dashes to catch up to Eli, who began running the moment Nico had pushed herself off the floor.

"D-DID YOU FIND HER?!" Maki calls out uselessly and Nico only shouts a quick reply back.

"WE'RE ABOUT TO! GO GET EVERYONE ELSE!" Without even hesitating the younger girl scrambles off the floor, rubbing her sore spots for a moment before taking off in the direction of the library.

The two of them continue into the garden with heavy steps and laboured breathing, not daring to stop for a moment until they finally reach the large wooden gazebo. They don't stop to take in their surroundings as Nico throws herself against one of the wooden posts for support while gasping desperately for air and Eli stops only a foot away, her hands on her knees inhaling large breaths of the fresh outdoor air into her own lungs.

"H-How am I alive. I can't feel my legs." Nico groans out, keeping all of her weight pressed against the post. "Eli I'm gonna die. Tell Nozomi I love her."

"Y-You'll live! You can tell her that yourself!" Eli breathes out, feeling the after effects from sprinting back and forth around the castle hit her and wincing slightly from the pain. "W-we aren't nearly as fast as Rin is. We need to work on that."

"You both seem pretty fast to me."

The voice catches them off guard and both of them immediately whip their heads to the source of the sound. Eli's eyes widen and her breath hitches while Nico shakily pushes herself away from the pillar as they lock their gazes onto the person who has been missing from their lives for the past nine months. It is hard to believe that she sitting in front of them after being gone for so long, but the two of them know they weren't seeing things.

Nozomi sits there with her hands at her sides and a wide smile on her face. Her hair is tied in a long braid that drapes over her shoulder, while a tiny braid is woven on the top of her head. She wears the exact same tunic that was gifted to her by the princess and aside from the tired glint in her eyes, she looks exactly as she had all those months ago. Eli is unable to take in anything else as her tears fall and she smiles so brightly she can't contain herself anymore.

In the blink of an eye Nozomi is pushing herself off of the bench and the knights launch themselves at her, crashing their bodies into her and embracing her tightly. Nozomi stumbles backwards from the force of the two knights colliding into her and she welcomes them happily, her tears flowing freely as she laughs. Nico's sobs start as she buries her face into Nozomi's side and hugs her firmly around the waist. Eli embraces Nozomi's upper body, burying her own face into Nozomi's shoulder and smiling uncontrollably as her tears are absorbed by the fabric of Nozomi's tunic. The violet haired girl grips her hands tightly into the deep pink and light blue clothes of her best friend and lover and the three of them sob together, never once attempting to move and enjoying the long overdue reunion.

"I-I'm home." Nozomi whispers loud enough for the two of them to hear. Eli laughs quietly and Nico clings tightly to her, smiling widely.

"Welcome home." Eli mumbles loud enough for Nozomi to hear.

When Maki arrives with the rest of the squad the three of them are still standing like that, completely oblivious to their presence. None of them speak a word as they smile warmly at the scene in front of them. Some let a few happy tears fall while others don't dare make a sound, not wanting to separate the three that continue to hold each other. Nozomi opens her eyes again smiling even wider at the sight of the rest of them, not daring to mask the happiness she feels seeing them all again.

"Everyone's here!" She laughs out still holding on tightly to Eli and Nico.

Honoka and Rin finally break, running over and joining the hug excitedly. Honoka comes in from Eli's side while Rin joins in from Nico's, the both of them laughing and yelling Nozomi's name excitedly. Kotori and Hanayo follow next, not wanting to be left out from the giant embrace as they wind their arms around the group. Maki and Umi are the final girls to join, Umi hugging from behind Honoka and Kotori and Maki shyly wrapping her own arms around Hanayo and Rin.

The group stand like that for a long moment, wet happy laughs coming from different girls and a joyous yet soothing atmosphere filling the garden. The wind is relaxing and cool and the different fragrances from the blooming flowers fill the shaded area as Nozomi is held by the most important people in her life. Nothing could replace the time they all lost together, but nothing felt better than coming back home to them.

One by one each girl began to pull away, everyone wiping tears from their eyes and smiling as it returns to the way they found them: Nico and Eli still clinging tightly to Nozomi. Nico was the first to pull away, a bit reluctantly at first. Her eyes were puffier than ever but her smile was the brightest as she took a handkerchief from Hanayo, wiping her face clean of the mess and thanking her quietly. Maki slowly took Nico's hand in her own and they shared a small smile with each other before their gazes follow everyone else's, landing on the two that still hold onto one another.

The couple pulls away from each other slightly, Eli lowering her arms to hold Nozomi's waist and Nozomi placing her hands on Eli's shoulders. They two stare at each other with soft smiles and gazes so full of love that the small group witnessing it could feel the immense happiness between the two of them. Nozomi lifts one of her hands to brush some wet strands of hair that stick to Eli's face behind her ear and the blonde lifts her own, pressing the soft warm palm of Nozomi's to her face and leaning into the touch. Eli closes her eyes sniffling quietly while Nozomi chuckles, brushing her thumb gently across Eli's cheek.

"I'm afraid I'm going to wake up now and this is just all going to be one very long but very realistic dream." Eli whispers quietly.

"It's no dream, Elichi. It's very much real." Nozomi responds and Eli's smile widens as her nickname rolls off Nozomi's tongue.

"You're back then. You're really here." Eli knows it is stupid but she needs the vocal reassurance that this isn't just too good to be true.

"Yes. I'm really here." Nozomi assures with a playful smile.

"For good?"

"For good."

"You have no more unfinished business with anyone else?"

"Hmm... Just one thing." Eli's eyebrows furrow and a large frown makes its way onto her face as she tightens her hold on Nozomi.

"You're not leaving without me." She says protectively. Nozomi laughs.

"I'd hope not, considering I need you in order to do it."

The playful smile grows while Nozomi's eyes fall to Eli's lips and the blonde registers what it was she meant. Her frown instantly fades and she smiles widely, not bothering to hesitate as she leans forward kissing Nozomi a little too excitedly. Their noses bump into each other painfully and the two of them wince as their lips touch. Nozomi laughs through their kiss and winds her arms tighter around Eli, pulling the two of them closer while Eli smiles uncontrollably during their kiss.

When the two ginger haired girls let out a loud cheer they are quickly reminded of their audience and after only a short moment, the two pull away from one another. Eli mumbles a small apology as she brushes her nose against Nozomi's, causing another laugh to come from her. She turns her attention to their friends, most of them pretending they weren't watching while Rin and Honoka make it obvious that they were. Nico has a small smirk on her face as her fingers stay intertwined with Maki's and the redhead has her head turned away, a large blush dusting her cheeks. Nozomi only smiles wider as she leans into Eli's embrace.

"So who found out I was here first?" She ask in an amused voice.

"Kayo-chin did!" Rin shouts immediately, pulling her friend into a tight hug. "She ran into Mika who told her they let in a carriage!"

"I-It was really thanks to her that I learnt it was you." Hanayo stutters out, smiling at the affection Rin gave her.

Nozomi laughs lightly before pushing herself away from Eli slowly, facing the rest of the group and smiling more as Eli took her hand and linked their fingers together.

"I was wondering if it would take a long time for you all to figure out I was here. I was in the garden for about five minutes before Elichi and Nicocchi barrelled out here."

"Hey, words travel fast in this castle. You haven't forgotten that, have you?" Nico has an amused smirk on her face as Nozomi laughs.

"How could I? This place and all of you were all I ever thought about."

There's a small silence as the air becomes a bit tense. They all knew how well Eli and Nico had fared being apart from Nozomi, but thinking about how well Nozomi was throughout the separation was something nobody wanted to ask. The violet haired girl only smiles, pulling Eli towards the bench. Eli stands behind her watching curiously as everyone else decides to as well.

"You all want to hear about what happened in Akiba, right?" Nozomi gestures to the empty spots around them and smiles a bit more as she watches Eli sit down next to her. "I would love to tell you all about it now if you have the time."

"Do we, Princess?" Umi looks to Kotori and Kotori doesn't hesitate to take her seat in the outdoor throne, nodding excitedly.

"Of course! We were only helping out and I'm sure the staff will manage without us."

With permission granted from the princess, everyone else began taking seats. Nico and Maki choose the bench next to Nozomi and Eli's while Rin and Hanayo sit on the one to the opposite side. Honoka and Umi stand on either side of Kotori's throne and the gang settles down to listen to Nozomi and her tale.

"I guess I can skip the details about our journey out of Otonokizaka. There wasn't much to it aside from very long rides with very little stops. Reaching Akiba was when A-Rise began to relay the finer details of their plan to me." She smiles as Eli rubs her thumb in soothing circles on her hand, leaning a bit closer to her and continuing the story.

"Erena and Anju had dispersed from Tsubasa and I the moment we entered Akiba territory. They were going to make their rounds to the village leaders and everyone they had banded together throughout their quest to find Nicocchi and I to let them know I had returned and that Ren's reign wouldn't last much longer. They intended to meet us in the castle town three weeks later, so Tsubasa and I took the longer route to the castle town. During that time Tsubasa and I- well," Nozomi pauses, smiling a bit apologetically. "I guess it was more Tsubasa. The only real contribution I gave to the plan was making sure it went as we wanted it to."

"Tsubasa plotted it out perfectly. Once we entered the castle town we would be hiding out in an allies home while Tsubasa arranged for a meeting with Hitomi, the current captain of Ren's guards. Hitomi would silently pass on the message we'd returned along to every guard and castle staff member who knew the truth and were working with A-Rise. From there I was to be brought into the castle with chains loosely tied around my wrists to add to the effect that I had been arrested against my own will. He would begin my trial and once the trial protocols requested him to ask me if I had any last words before my 'death', I was supposed to demand my crown back and ask for him to step aside. If he refused, then I was supposed to order the guards to seize him and I would take my crown back myself."

"You're saying a lot of 'supposed to's" Nico interrupts with a frown. "Did it not go as A-Rise intended for it to?"

"Patience Nicocchi." Nozomi says with a smile. "I'll get there."

Nico pouts a bit and leans forward a bit more as Nozomi continues her story.

"Everything went as planned until the trial. Erena and Anju met us at their designated rendezvous point along with several villagers who tagged along with them. They ended up taking rooms at the inns throughout the town and it wasn't clear to me why they had came along until Erena explained that they wanted to be present for whatever punishment I would be giving Ren. They wanted to see the corrupt ruler fall for themselves."

'What I would have paid to see that too.' Eli thought to herself as she listened to Nozomi's voice.

"When the trial came everything got a bit rocky. Tsubasa's notice had gotten to one of the few supporters Ren had and he completely skipped the part where I would have my final words and he instructed I be taken straight to the courtyard, where a noose was waiting for me."

Everyone visibly tenses and Rin lifts a hand to her throat, swallowing nervously as she imagines just how terrified Nozomi must have felt in that moment. Eli's hand squeezes Nozomi's and the violet haired girl returns the gesture, bringing her back down to earth and reminding her that there was indeed a good ending to this story.

"A-Rise was furious. Erena was the first to step forward, demanding a retrial for the fact that Ren refused to ask me for my final words. Ren retorted that he was the king and that he made the rules, but then it was Tsubasa who stepped up to him. She stood only inches from his face and shouted loudly to the court that because there was no coronation, there was no way he could continue staying in power when the true ruler had returned."

"The court demanded for Ren to proceed as he was supposed to and had no choice but to do just that. The nobles were angry and so were many of his guards. He asked me for my final words and by then Anju had loosened my chains enough for me to get my wrists free. I demanded Ren step down and return my crown to me and confess to his own crimes." There's a smile on her face like she's recalling something pleasant and it doesn't go unnoticed by the group.

"After that he paled. Tsubasa was confused because this hadn't been in our original plan. I took Erena's sword from her side and pointed it at Ren's throat, demanding he tell the court the truth about what happened to my parents and what he had intended to do to me the day I had run away."

Nico and Eli both feel a twinge of pride knowing Nozomi had taken control of the situation and pointed a sword directly at the disgusting man's throat.

"When Ren tried to defend himself I began bluffing, saying that I made a deal with the person who he had hired that I would spare their life if they told me the truth of what Ren did. He immediately blew up, too frustrated about trusting a shady hitman to realized that he wasn't denying everything I had claimed. The court saw his true intent right then and there and by the time he caught on to what he was saying, I had ordered for his arrest and the crown was seized from him."

Nozomi has a small smile on her face and the small group of girls grin proudly towards her.

"So when you got your crown back was probably when you sent that announcement to us, right?" Kotori asks curiously, leaning forward in her throne.

"Around that time I think. It was September third when I took my crown back, but the letter probably got here around your birthday Princess." Nozomi replies thoughtfully. "After that it was just a long process of getting Akiba back to how my parents had it: safe and pleasant."

"What the hell did Ren do to cause you to spend so many months fixing his mistakes?!" Nico asks incredulously.

"Well, for starters he chased me and you out of the kingdom." There's a playful smile on Nozomi's face as Nico throws a small frown her way. Nozomi laughs lightly and shakes her head, sighing a bit as she lifts her free hand to rub the side of her face lightly.

"A whole village was wiped out and he did nothing about it, not to mention the whole mountain side of the castle town was being raided by bandits. Bandits that actually came around due to Ren's order to track down Nicocchi and I at all costs. I visited every victim personally and while I couldn't give them back the people they lost, many were grateful that I had stopped Ren from ruining more lives."

"Aside from all that I was seeing to it that everything went back to the way it had been, as well as did investigations of my own."

"Like your own private missions?" Rin asked, tilting her head curiously. Nozomi nods, confirming Rin's answer with a small smile.

"That's right Rin-chan. I had Tsubasa and Erena stick to the priorities of getting the kingdom back in order, but Anju worked with me on my own private requests. The first was interviewing every single knight and guard that advanced after us the night we escaped from the castle."

A few pairs of eyes land on Nico and she watches Nozomi, her eyes becoming more stern and waiting to hear her continue. Nozomi looks at Nico sadly, pulling herself away from Eli to move closer to her friend. She reaches her hand out and Nico takes it slowly, looking at Nozomi with a more worried expression.

"Nicocchi, we don't know the true story to how it happened but there was a fire on the farm." Nico's eyes widen in fear and Nozomi keeps her eyes on Nico's, continuing to speak slowly.

"I went and visited it myself. The only thing still standing was half of the barn. Everything else was reduced to rubble."

Nico's lower lip trembles, Nozomi squeezing her hand tightly before taking her other hand and placing it on top.

"Many guards had different stories. Some said that a lantern was thrown while trying to arrest your mother and it smashed against the house and caught fire on the dry parts. Others told me Ren instructed them to burn it down to try and smoke you and I out of hiding. Some said that your siblings got out but others said that they didn't see a single person escape. But there was one detail that matched all of their stories, and it was that your mother was arrested and brought back to the castle."

"What happened to her!?" Nico isn't able to stay quiet as her eyes began to water again.

"She was sent to the castle prison and Ren tried to squeeze where we went out of her. He-" Nozomi pauses, taking in a small breath to compose herself and exhaling slowly before continuing. "He did a lot of terrible things to her, but she didn't once say where we had been heading or if we were even there. According to the cell guards, all she asked for were her children and to know if they were safe."

"Was Mama still there when you got back..?" Nico ask quietly. Nozomi slowly nods her head, a small smile on her face.

"She wasn't doing well, but she was there. I- I didn't really know how well she was but when she asked about you and if you were okay I told her everything. I told her about our adventure here and the happiness we found and she- she was really happy."

When Nico watches Nozomi frown she knew that it was going to turn and she prepared herself for the words Nozomi was going to say next.

"She was very sick and not even the best healers could do anything for her. I stayed with her until the very end, and made sure that her last moments were good ones."

Nico doesn't break like Nozomi expects her too. She squeezes her hand again and nods in understanding. Nico knew there was a chance her mother had already been dead but knowing that Nozomi was there and that she wasn't alone or rotting in a jail cell when she passed away comforted her.

"Thank you, Nozomi." Nico says softly. "You did everything you could." Nozomi nods, not daring to look away from her friend as she speaks softly.

"I know it's slim, but there is still a chance your sisters and brother lived. The guards that claimed they escaped said they had run into town for help and after that they weren't sure. So I sent out letters to every orphanage in the kingdom to find out if they had children that matched the description of your siblings, but I received no reply. I told Tsubasa that if any sort of reply around the three of them came up that she would have to send a raven to us immediately."

This time it's Nico smiling softly. She takes her other hand from Maki's and places it on Nozomi's. The two lock eyes and Nozomi's own smile matches the red eyed girls.

"Thank you. You did your best and I know that Mama was happy you stayed with her and that we got to safety."

Nozomi's eyes are teary again and the two pull away from each other. Maki pulls Nico into a side hug while Nozomi settles back against Eli. Maki says nothing as she feels the slight trembling coming from Nico, calmly rubbing the older girls back soothingly as she takes in the news that Nozomi had given her. Eli grabs Nozomi's hand in her own again as the violet haired girl decides to continue the rest of her story, the hardest parts now over.

"After that I took a bit of time to myself. Everything was very overwhelming and I gave Tsubasa permission to make decisions on my behalf while I simply supervised. At some point during all of this I began considering giving her the crown and I couldn't see anyone more fit to run Akiba after that. We all knew I would be coming back to Otonokizaka and my stay wouldn't be permanent, so between fixing issues in the kingdom and restoring it to its former glory, I was teaching Tsubasa all the things I had been taught about being a proper Queen."

"It took a long time but on the year anniversary of my parents death, I announced I would be stepping down from the throne and a new line of royalty would begin for Akiba. I introduced Tsubasa as the new Queen and not long after that we got the announcement from the Princess about her own coronation plans and how all the neighbouring kingdoms were invited. There were still a few things we needed to settle in Akiba and I was worried we wouldn't make it back here in time for the coronation, but Anju reminded us that we cleared the plans for the Grand River's use to transport goods and people, so if we made it to the river at the right time we would be here exactly when we wanted to be." Nozomi sighs happily, getting to the conclusion of her story and smiling excitedly to her friends.

"And that was everything that went on throughout the last nine months. Lots of traveling, emotional turmoil and all the while I taught Tsubasa how to lead a country while restoring said country from the terrible King's doings." She gives the group a tiny grin before turning to Eli, noticing she had been quiet throughout the whole retelling of the story.

"You really went through a lot Nozomi-chan." Honoka comments absentmindedly, earning a rude glare from Umi. Nozomi laughs at Honoka's bluntness and nods in agreement.

"It was a lot. But I'm okay now."

"We're certainly glad about that!" Rin says with a laugh, standing from the bench. "Now that Nozomi-chan's back we should celebrate!"

"We can celebrate later, Rin." Umi says, not oblivious to how quiet Eli is and the silent question everyone knew she wouldn't dare voice. "Princess, I believe now would be as good a time as ever to get back to overseeing the preparations for tomorrow's coronation ball."

Sensing the other meaning to Umi's suggestion, Kotori gives a nod of agreement and smiles.

"Maki-chan, could you take the place of temporary Captain for the day?" Kotori asks the redhead, surprising both her and Eli.

"Of course, Princess." Maki says quickly, standing up and sharing a confused stare with Eli as Kotori beams.

"Perfect! Captain!" She turned her attention to Eli, smiling warmly. "You're relieved of your duties. We'll see you and Nozomi-chan at dinner time~."

Eli only gapes while Nozomi grins and the two of them stay seated as everyone else begins standing. Nico pouts a bit and makes a comment about how she wanted to hang out with Nozomi too, to which Maki replied that she'd have all the time in the world to do that later. Nico does not bother arguing when Maki declares it a temporary captain's order and she decides to give Nozomi one last quick hug before heading back to work with her partner and the rest of the squad.

This left the couple all by themselves underneath the shade of the gazebo and Eli turns her full attention to Nozomi, closing her mouth and smiling lightly as she sees green eyes staring at her happily.

"I... guess I have the day off now." Eli muses as she stares at Nozomi.

"I guess you do." She says, her smile widening.

With everyone gone, Eli stops holding back and she pulls Nozomi to her, burying her face into her hair and listening to the melodious laugh that comes from her mouth. Nozomi wraps her arms tightly around Eli, humming happily and lifting her hand to run it gently through Eli's ponytail.

"I wish you didn't have to do all of that alone." Eli mumbles quietly. "I wish I was there. I wish I was with you and helping you."

Nozomi says nothing as she closes her eyes, continuing to spin and gently play with the blonde strands of hair.

"I thought that for a long time too." She replies just as quietly. "I spent too many nights wishing I brought something of yours with me. I even began lighting a fire in my room every night because I had gotten so used to it and it reminded me of you."

Eli chuckles slightly, pulling herself away and pausing for a moment to stare at Nozomi. Her green irises sparkled just like they always did, and even if her eyes are puffy and swollen from the amount of tears that were shed, Nozomi still looks as beautiful as ever. She lifts her hands, fixing stray strands of Nozomi's hair and smiling contently when she earns another small laugh from the other girl. Once she is finished idly playing with Nozomi's appearance, she let her hands fall down to her sides and the two of them simply gaze at one another.

"What should we do together?" Eli asks after a moment of silence. "There's still plenty of time left for the both of us to do whatever we'd like."

Nozomi pretends to contemplate her answer and she smiles a bit, lifting her hand and tapping her cheek lightly with her fingers.

"Why don't you take me around the castle and tell me about everything you did while I was gone?" Nozomi asks. "I'd love to hear everything."

Eli's smile is warm as she stands up, holding her hand out for Nozomi to take. The violet haired girl smiles more as she takes it and Eli pulls her up from the bench, linking their arms just like they used to and smiling lovingly at her.

"I would love nothing more."

* * *

The courtroom is packed with guests and villagers the next day as hushed whispers and excitement filled the large, well lit room. Tsubasa and her entourage sit together in the front row with a couple other nobles that represent the neighbouring kingdoms. The Queen sits in a smaller throne off to the side, wearing a beige gown with fancy gold and off white details while the crown that would be given to Kotori rested beautifully atop her head. Where the Queen's throne would normally sit is a small table and two candles and just in front of it stands the Archbishop, placing down the beautiful silver and gold sceptre and ornament that Kotori would be required to hold when she was presented as the new Queen.

Standing at the doors waiting to open them are Rin and Honoka, their specific instructions are to wait until they were given the signal from the Queen. Maki and Umi are positioned at the end of the front rows while Nozomi and Eli stand paces behind the throne of the Queen and the Archbishop. The ceremony is scheduled to begin the moment Nico returns and announces that the Princess is ready. Both her and Hanayo were requested to help with her dressing preparations that morning.

With the day being a special occasion, Eli's squad wears their most formal attire. Eli, Maki and Umi wear matching uniforms in different shades. Umi's is a deep navy blue with a lighter blue trim while Maki's is a royal red with a darker red trim. Eli's is the exact same one she wore at her wedding, including the beautiful sash that Kotori had added to it. She wears it with great pride and lets out a satisfied hum at the quiet murmurs of how dashing everyone looks.

Honoka and Rin's outfits aren't as regal as the Captain's, but there was still a certain formal hint to it in its own sense. They wear newer tunics, Honoka's being a bright and vibrant orange while Rin's is a sunny and elegant yellow. They wear dark leather gloves and matching boots and the two of them coordinate it even better by tying their hair into ponytails. Rin's is a tiny little thing that barely stands out while Honoka's is low and drapes over her shoulder. Nico's attire matches the two ginger haired girls perfectly, being a light pink in colour and having the exact same gloves and boots. She promised the both of them that she would wear her hair in a matching ponytail to complete their look.

Nozomi had come prepared this time, bringing a semi-formal outfit of her own from back home. It was a simple lavender gown with sleeves the ran to her mid arms and a skirt that rested just above the ground. On her feet were beautiful flats that were a darker shade of purple and her hair had been tied in the low twintails she always wore. Despite this attire she is still sure to wear the belt with her sword attached tightly to it.

With perfect timing Nico enters from one of the side exits, approaching the throne with a confidant smile. She bows her head to the soon to be former Queen and lifts it, speaking loudly and clearly for the court to hear.

"The Princess is ready and waiting."

The Queen smiles warmly and dismisses Nico, who falls back to the side and takes her spot next to Maki at the edge of the front row. With a small lift of her hand, six different castle staff members blow into long horns, signalling that it was time for the ceremony to begin. Honoka and Rin grasp the handles of the heavy doors firmly before pulling them open. The large crowd of villagers and nobles stand as the melodious tune of the horns continues and Kotori steps into the giant room.

There are small gasps as Kotori begins descending down the pathway, her long deep green cape trailing behind her with each step. Her hands are adorned with the most beautiful white gloves and her dress is a stunning off white with pastel green accents and beautifully embroidered feathers along the bottom of the gown. Her silver tiara rests atop her head and even if her gaze is serious, there is a slight twitch at the corner of her mouth as a very tiny smile plays carefully on her lips.

Hanayo trails behind her, wearing her own semi-formal dress that was similar to the everyday dress Kotori wore. It is a beautiful forest green with lighter green accents and if you look close enough it seemed Kotori had added her own special touch in the embroidered accents that were weaved into the skirt and resembled straws of rice. She carries the end of Kotori's cape to ensure that it does not snag on the various pots of plants at the end of each row of seats.

The beauty that radiates off of the Princess is absolutely stunning and her mother smiles fondly as her fully grown daughter steps gracefully towards her. Kotori stops a few feet ahead of her mother and the Archbishop, who smiles kindly towards her. Hanayo gently lays down the long green cape and makes her way to the side Umi stands at so that she is out of the way and the coronation ceremony can begin.

The Archbishop begins his speech, telling the court a brief summary of the Minami's royal history in Otonokizaka. He talks about the past Kings and Queens and of big things they accomplished during their reign. He also talks of the current Queen and the many things she accomplished in the thirty years she reigned. He continues his speech saying he is pleased to announce that with the current Queen retiring, it means the beginning of a new chapter for Otonokizaka and it's new ruler. He then turns his attention to Kotori, giving her another kind smile and taking a few steps past her, gesturing for her mother to stand and make her way over to them.

Kotori's mother does as instructed, pushing herself from her throne with a small smile and stepping towards the Archbishop. While she makes her way over, the Archbishop has Kotori to kneel and gently removes the tiara from her head, placing it gently on a pillow that sits atop the table. When the Queen reaches the two of them, she kneels as instructed and the Archbishop slowly takes the crown from atop her head. The older woman doesn't dare move as the man takes a couple of steps away from her. He speaks again in a loud voice, reciting rehearsed words as he places the crown softly on top of Kotori's head. Once it was done both she and her mother stand and they share a small smile as the Archbishop grabs the final pieces to complete Kotori's coronation. Without saying any words he holds the items to her and Kotori slowly removes her gloves, laying them gently on the table and grabbing both items carefully; the sceptre with her right hand and the ornament with her left. She then turns her full body to face the court, a serious expression on her face as the Archbishop concludes the ceremony.

"With this I present to you; Queen Minami Kotori of Otonokizaka!"

Loud applause comes from the crowd but nothing is louder than the clapping of her friends, all of them smiling affectionately as they watch their Princess become the Queen. Kotori stands there for only a moment before turning and handing the expensive objects back to the Archbishop. She smiles warmly to her subjects, clearing her throat and beginning a small speech of her own that she had prepared.

"Thank you, everyone." She begins in a chipper voice, her smile wide as she speaks. "It is with great pleasure that I take the role passed down to me by my mother. I look forward to being the best Queen I can be to our lovely kingdom and our lovely home."

"Today I would like to not only celebrate my coronation, but also a new council of sorts." Kotori steps forward a bit, speaking a bit louder so that her voice projects clearly throughout the large room.

"Many years ago Otonokizaka had it's own knights of the round table that my great great grandmother and grandfather would turn to for counsel and guidance. It was disbanded not long after their reign and ever since the council of Otonokizaka has been non existent, leaving my mother, her parents and their parents to make many important decisions with just their own judgement. I have admired this about them all of my life, but I know it's not an easy task. I want to be a fair Queen to my people and I want to be just and it is with great pleasure that I announce the people who will restore Otonokizaka's knights of the round table, who will help me on my journey to being the best Queen I can be."

Eli makes quick eye contact with Umi, who simply smiles in her direction. Of course she would have some idea of what this was about. The blonde quickly looks over to Maki and Nico and is comforted to see that they were also just as surprised as she is. She spares a glance to her right to notice that Nozomi has a curious smile of her own while she watches Kotori grab a scroll from the table and begin unravelling it.

"I would like to start by calling upon two of the most loyal subjects I have. When your name is called, please step forward." Her voice is laced with excitement as she looks down to her parchment, announcing the first name at the top of her list.

"Koizumi Hanayo."

A tiny squeak came from the brunette and Umi looks at her with an encouraging smile. The shy girl steps forward slowly, making her way over to Kotori with small steps and nervously keeping her hands at her sides. She stands directly to Kotori's right, facing the court with the most neutral expression she can muster. Once she's in position, Kotori calls out the next name with a happy smile.

"Ayase Nozomi."

There's a quiet murmur from the crowd and both Nozomi and Eli share a quick gaze. Nozomi's eyes had widened slightly and Eli slowly smiles, giving her a small nod to help encourage her to step away from where she stood. The violet haired girl quietly moves forward, glancing away from Eli and stepping over to where Kotori and Hanayo wait. She takes her place on Kotori's left, turning to the court and matching Hanayo's expression.

"These two girls may not be knights, but their contributions to the castle and kingdom have been extraordinary. Hanayo works tirelessly every single day to make sure that I'm prepared for my daily duties and helps me with my own projects while also assisting any castle staff member she can. She can perform an incredible amount of work in a single day and I'll never fail to be impressed by it."

The brunette has quite the embarrassed blush on her face but she says nothing as a small smile creeps onto her features. Maki and Rin are both grinning broadly from their spots in the courtroom, feeling nothing but pride as they listen to their new Queen praise their dear friend. Kotori then looks over to Nozomi, smiling warmly as she began to speak again.

"And Nozomi bravely went on a mission of her own to keep our country safe from Akiba's corrupt ruler. She worked endlessly for nine long months and thanks to her hard work, our bond with the new Akiba Queen and her kingdom is stronger than ever. It's thanks to her that our kingdoms are still in the best relationship it can be, and for that I will forever be grateful."

Both Eli and Nico cannot stop their own smiles from growing as Nozomi's eyes shine with tears that threaten to fall. Hearing praise like that come from the former princess reminds her that there were many good things to come from her long absence. She lifts a hand to quickly wipe away a stray tear that threatens to fall and she smiles humbly as she continues to face the court.

"With all of this being said, I would like to ask the two of you an important question." The ash haired girl speaks loud enough for the court to hear, despite only talking to the two girls who stand next to her.

Both Nozomi and Hanayo turn their full attention to Kotori, patiently waiting for her to speak again.

"Many say that behind every great Queen is an amazing King, but I've never once thought of it like that as I watched my mother raise me on her own. I've always relied on the relationships with my friends for guidance and to help lead me towards the right direction. I would like to formally ask the two of you not as the Queen, but as a dear friend." She continues to smile warmly at the two of them as she finally voices the question, her tone never once wavering. "Would the two of you like to be my royal advisors?"

Aside from the few gasps that come from the crowd, there is nothing but silence. Eli and her squad watch with curious eyes and bated breath as Nozomi and Hanayo think over the very important question that Kotori has presented to them. The two look to each other for only a brief moment before Nozomi slowly smiles. Hanayo is unable to stop herself as she too smiles, and the two of them turn to Kotori, ready to state their answers.

"I-it would be quite a challenge." Hanayo speaks first, bowing her head and speaking just barely loud enough for most of the room to hear. "But I would be honoured to work alongside you as one of your advisors, Kotori-chan."

"I too, would be most honoured." Nozomi says with a smile before bowing her head like Hanayo had. "I would love nothing more Kotori-chan."

The royal smiles widely, gesturing for a castle worker to step forward. In her hands she holds a small white pillow that has two elegant gold pins. The pins were shaped like the Otonokizaka kingdom sigil and in the finer details one could see the very tiny fragments of light green and purple gems that rested inside the crevices of each pin. She carefully places the scroll down to pick up one of the pins carefully in her gentle hands. Kotori moves to Hanayo first, instructing her to lift her head and carefully pinning it to the left side of her dress. Once finished, Kotori did the same for Nozomi and the three of them faced the court.

"Next I would like to ask Captain Ayase to step forward, as well as the five members of her squad."

Without hesitating Eli steps away from her spot. She is the first to reach Kotori, though Umi is not far behind. Maki and Nico are the next to arrive with Honoka and Rin bring up the rear. Together they walk up the carpeted pathway to Kotori's side. Without saying anything the six girls turn and faced the court as Kotori moves to stand in the center.

"Captain Ayase and her squad have served and protected our kingdom for quite some time now. They put our safety above their own and they dive into whatever situation they're needed for. I can remember countless times where each of them have protected me from intruders or helped me face difficult tasks." Her smile is contagious and Nozomi and Hanayo can't help but grin along with her, knowing exactly what she intends to announce.

"It's with great pleasure that I announce these six brave knights as the final members of the reformed knights of the round table!"

The audience doesn't hesitate to respond with a loud applause as Kotori signals for another castle worker to step forward. She also carries a white pillow which holds six badges. Just like Nozomi and Hanayo's, each has different coloured jewels within their crevices. Kotori walks down the line of girls, beginning at Eli on the far end. She picks up one of the badges and pins it onto her sash, smiling pleasantly at the blonde captain before moving down the line of girls. Eli takes a short moment to gaze down at the badge she now wears and her heart swells with pride at the unexpected surprise.

Sensing someone approaching her from the side, she glances over to see that Nozomi has taken the empty spot beside her. The two of them share a small smile before they face the crowd again, waiting patiently for Kotori to finish presenting the badges to each of the knights.

After pinning the final badge onto Rin and giving a small smile to Hanayo ,who had taken up position next to Rin, Kotori steps back towards the center of the room. She stands in between Honoka and Maki and smiles widely towards the court, waiting for the applause to finish before she concludes the ceremony.

"Thank you, everyone. I truly do look forward to ruling the kingdom and being the best Queen I can be, and I hope they you all look forward to it as well."

Kotori's eyes are glimmering in the light that shines through the large windows and the crowd stays silent as they take a brief moment to admire the nine girls that stand before them. The end of ceremony music soon begins to play and the nine girls slowly join hands as the court begins to applaud one final time, celebrating not only Queen Kotori, but the eight girls who will continue to work alongside her for the rest of their days.

* * *

Evening arrives quickly and the enormous ballroom is filled with many different nobles and workers celebrating a fantastic coronation. Kotori has shed her long beautiful cape and simply wears her elegant dress as she, A-Rise, and her friends shared a loud and eventful dinner full of stories told by Nico and Honoka while Nozomi teases and jabs Maki about the finer details of her and Nico's relationship (even if she learns nothing, a flustered Maki proves to be an amusing one.)

Afterwards Tsubasa politely requests a dance with the new Queen and Kotori happily agrees. Both Umi and Honoka watch carefully from the sidelines as Kotori laughs pleasantly at a comment Tsubasa makes during their dance. Nozomi smirks, amused as she witnesses the two of them impatiently wait for the song to end. Neither girls has noticed her approaching the two of them and they end up visibly jumping when she speaks.

"You could always cut into the dance and sweep Kotori away if you're that concerned."

"N-Nozomi!" Umi sputters out, frowning a bit. "Interrupting a dance between the two Queen's seems... quite rude."

"Not to me!" Honoka says, beaming a bit at Nozomi's suggestion. "Nozomi, you take Tsubasa and I'll take Kotori-chan!"

Nozomi gives Honoka a thumbs up before the two of them glide their way onto the dance floor. Umi relaxes more once Kotori is stepping in time with Honoka and she smiles slightly as she watches the two of them giggle with each other and spin to the music. She laughed lightly as Honoka dips Kotori but quickly stiffens when Honoka began to lose her balance ever so slightly. She quickly made her way from the sidelines to the two of them before Honoka accidentally drops their Queen due to being too silly during their dance.

Meanwhile not far from where she stood, Maki was refusing Rin's insistent offer on sharing a dance.

"Rin, I'm fine! I don't feel like dancing, I'll just stay here and watch you and Hanayo."

"Oh come on Maki-chan! Dancing next to you and Nico-chan would be twice as fun!" Rin pouts at her red haired friend before nudging her gently with her elbow. "Come on! Imagine how much fun it'd be to dip Nico-chan and spin her into you! Dancing is like one of the most intimate things a couple can do together!"

"I can think of a couple other things." Maki blurts out without thinking before quickly covering her mouth.

Both Hanayo and Rin laugh as Maki mutters something about Nozomi's nosiness making her lose track of her thoughts.

"Maki-chan, are you refusing to dance because you think you're bad at it?" Hanayo asks. Maki doesn't say anything as she lowers her hand, only nodding slightly.

"Eh? But you were so good at the Kotori-chan's birthday! You and Nico looked amazing!"

"No no, you're thinking of Nico and Eli. I didn't dance with anyone at Kotori's birthday." Maki says as she recalls the last ball they had.

Both Nico and Eli had blown away the guests while they danced song after song on the dance floor. Maki remembers standing on the side unable to stop smiling at how ridiculous the two of them looked when they went from elegant ballroom dancing to exaggerated spins and lifts. The two of them had obviously enjoyed their time on the dance floor, laughing and out of breath.

"Which is why you're definitely dancing with me today." Maki, Rin, and Hanayo both turn to the sound of Nico's voice and Maki is speechless as she notices Nico's change of attire.

Her hair was down and despite the fact she still wore the belt with her sword and gloves, it didn't take her attention away from the simple white gown she now wore. Maki could feel her face heat up as Nico smirks triumphantly at her, crossing her arms and lifting her chin up proudly.

"Nico-chan, you look incredible!" Rin comments, unable to take her eyes away from her. "When did you go get changed?!"

"Between doing quick rounds with the Captain between dinner and now." She replies smugly. "At the birthday ball Maki-chan refused to dance with me and part of me guessed it was because we were wearing our tunics. But now she can't say no! I'm dressed beautifully, she's dressed handsomely, it'd be a crime if we didn't dance at all."

"Well, good luck Nico-chan." Rin says with a shrug. "Maki-chan refuses to dance because she thinks she's bad at it."

Maki shoots Rin a dangerous glare and before she can retort, the ginger haired girl whisks Hanayo off of her feet and onto the dance floor to join the other couples.

"There's nothing wrong with being bad at dancing you know." Nico says, bringing Maki's attention back to her.

"It isn't that I'm bad at dancing." Maki says awkwardly, lifting her gloved hand to play with a few strands of her hair. Her face turns a deeper shade of red and she mumbles a bit more quietly so that only her and Nico can hear.

"It's more like I don't know how."

Nico stares at Maki for a moment before quickly grinning, grabbing her free hand and pulling her closer with an excited tug. Maki gasps as Nico laughs, her ruby irises sparkling with excitement.

"Looks like I'll just have to teach you!" She declares. "The great Nico nii is fantastic at dancing and teaching you will be a piece of cake!"

"Erm-" Maki hesitates. "I-I don't want to look dumb out there."

"Come on Maki-chan, you're dancing with me. You won't look dumb at all." The raven haired girl defends, staring up at her. "At least not as dumb as Honoka and Umi look right now."

Maki spares a glance over to the two of them to see Kotori laughing while Umi and Honoka are in a messy pile on the floor, Umi trapped underneath Honoka as she apologizes over and over again.

"I guess I can't really argue with that." Maki says while her lips quirked upward into a smile. "Alright then. I'll dance."

Nico grins brightly as she begins tugging Maki towards the dance floor. Maki follows her with a bit of reluctance and watches carefully as Nico adjusts the positions of her hands. She takes one of Maki's and places it softly against her hip and then holds the other carefully in the opposite hand. Maki swallows a bit nervously before making eye contact with Nico. The ruby eyed girl gives her a reassuring smile before whispering the first instruction.

"Just follow my lead, Maki-chan."

Not far from them Tsubasa and Nozomi dance, the two of them stepping in time to the beat with small smiles on their faces.

"This kingdom is quite the lively one." Tsubasa comments. "I completely understand the attraction you have to it. It's homely and warm; very welcoming."

"It certainly is." Nozomi replies, allowing Tsubasa to spin her. "It's the first place I've truly felt like I was home."

"I can see why. Otonokizaka is certainly something else. I look forward to many years of working alongside you and your new Queen."

Nozomi only smiles kindly as the song comes to an end and the two of them stop. They share a quiet moment before the next song quickly begins, the tempo being much slower than the previous one. There's a gentle tap on Tsubasa's shoulder and both her and Nozomi turn to the side to see Eli standing there, a gentle smile on her face.

"Pardon my intrusion, your majesty. Would you mind if I cut in?" Tsubasa laughs lightly, stepping away from Nozomi and gesturing to her with a grin.

"She's all yours, Captain. Take good care of her."

Eli nods and the Akiba royal makes her way back to the side where her guard and advisor stand watching. She turns her full attention to Nozomi before giving a polite bow, holding her hand out and smiling playfully.

"May I have this dance, fair maiden?" Nozomi laughs lightly, returning Eli's bow with a curtsy before slipping her own hand into Eli's outstretched one.

"It would be my pleasure, Captain."

The two get into position and began to move to the music, keeping complete eye contact as they sway to the melody. Nozomi's hand fits perfectly with Eli's as the blonde leads them through their dance, gliding them around the dance floor and catching the attention of many curious guests.

To their right side is Hanayo and Rin, who step slowly and carefully, watching other dancing couples as they move themselves throughout the room. Both of them are confident in their slow dancing skills and enjoy the softer tempo. It gives them more chances to observe the rest of the dancers and the childhood friends enjoy it more so than the dance they share with each other.

Not much farther away are Nico and Maki. Nico's arms wrap around Maki's neck and Maki's forehead rests gently against Nico's. They only sway slightly with Maki taking careful steps, getting used to the new and slower beat and enjoying nothing but the way they move. Small smiles play on their lips as they ignore everything but each other and the music, Nico making odd comments to help Maki with her steps and Maki wordlessly following the instructions.

Along the side Honoka now stands with A-Rise, chatting idly with the Akiba Queen, her guard, and her advisor while Umi and Kotori dance nearby, watching Honoka speak excitedly as they move slowly to the beat. Kotori has a tiny smile on her face as she rests her head on Umi's shoulder while the navy haired girl holds her close and doesn't dare move out of the viewing range of their ginger haired love and the three Akiba girls.

The night passes on as everyone had hoped. Drinks are shared, dancing is done, and as the ball winds to an end many nobles retire to their rooms for a good night's rest before their journey home the following day. Eventually only the new Queen and her friends were left in the ballroom. Rin and Honoka make up their own dance without any music but their own loud singing while Hanayo and Kotori laugh in amusement. Umi watches with a tired but fond gaze as the ginger haired girls sing their hearts out. Next to her, Nico and Maki lean tiredly against one another in their chairs after spending most of the night dancing. Not too far away from them both Nozomi and Eli watch with soft gazes and fond smiles.

The two soon announce they will be retiring to their own room and wish the group good night before exiting the ball room, arm in arm as they slowly walk down the hallway together. As the two of them pass through the familiar halls that lead to their room, the blonde can't help but think that it had been the perfect end to an amazing day. Nozomi is here, Kotori is now the Queen, the ball was amazing, and everyone clearly had a great day. Eli can't stop her sleepy smile from growing as Nozomi leans into her tiredly and she gently rests her head atop Nozomi's.

It truly was the perfect end to a perfect day.


	14. Epilogue

**AN:** Hello everyone! Thank you for being patient as I took a small break before typing up the very last chapter for my very first ongoing fic. It was a lot of fun, thank you all for joining me on this fun adventure! A huge thank you to Pasdechat on tumblr for beta reading my story and to all the amazing artists who contributed their own fanarts and the authors who even wrote their own fanfics! It's made me happier than you might ever know.

Thank you again, and I hope you all enjoy this last fun adventure to The Knight and the Maiden :)

* * *

"Alright, let's go over everything." Umi's voice is loud as she looks over her unraveled scroll. "We have the tent?"

"Check!" Rin says, poking the bundled up fabric as she places it into a compartment of the carriage with the help of Honoka.

"Our food supplies?"

"All packed up and accounted for, we just need the Hanayo seal of approval." Honoka grins as she looks over to the brunette, who reads her own list as she looks over the packed up goods.

"Perfect. Are all our horses prepared?"

"Four of them are here and ready, Maki-chan and Nico-chan will be bringing the others once they're finished gearing them up." Rin confirms with a grin. "Kayo-chin and her majesty's are pulling the carriage, yours and Nozomi-chan's are going to be following behind the carriage with the extra's that don't fit, and everyone else will be traveling on their own horses!"

"Perfect. And the necessities?" Umi smiles a bit as she looks over her packing handiwork on the carriage, quickly nodding and rolling up her scroll. "Taken care of perfectly."

"Do we have the Queen's belongings all packed up?" Honoka asks and Umi nods.

"That was the first thing I took care of. Her special pillow and clothes are all packed inside the compartments of the carriage, as well as a few things to keep her busy should she find herself bored in the carriage."

"I guess all we need to do is make sure we're all prepared ourselves." Rin, Honoka and Umi look over to their captain, her cape replaced with a fancy travel cloak. Underneath she wears her shimmering light blue armour and she smiles warmly towards her three squad members.

"Good morning Captain!" The three of them greet.

"Morning girls." Eli replies. "I can see you three have been working hard. Are you all dressed and ready?"

"We are indeed, Captain." Umi confirms with a smile. "I'm surprised to see you're wearing your cloak already. You do realize it's going to be a warm day today."

"I'll be taking the cloak off when we hit the road." Eli says with a small smile. "Is everyone present?"

"Just about." Umi responds. "We're waiting on her Majesty and your wife."

Eli nods as Hanayo makes a loud declaration about the food and all the cooking utensils being present and having her approval. Two castle staff members carefully lift the heavy trunk and its contents onto the back of the carriage, squeezing it tightly next to the tent and all the tools the knights would need for their journey.

The girls were preparing themselves for the very first cross country tour Kotori would be taking to see her kingdom. The summer solstice festival came and went and with it Kotori declared she would spend her summer visiting the villages of Otonokizaka with her knights and doing some sight seeing. Her mother would be filling in for all her duties while she was away on vacation and the only guards Kotori intends to bring are her knights of the round table as well as her advisors. It's the first of the many adventures Kotori wants to experience with her friends and everyone's full of excitement as the time to leave for the first village is almost upon them.

Maki approaches with two horses, fully packed and ready for their summer long journey. Not far behind her Nico approaches with the final three, an excited smile on her face.

"Morning Captain! We just finished preparing your horse!" She announces happily. "Took longer than expected because someone kept trying to eat my hair." She shoots a small glare towards the dark brown horse, who in turn attempts to nip at Nico's closest twin tail. Eli laughs.

"Yeah, he does that from time to time." The Captain walks over, stripping herself of her cloak and stroking the horse's nose gently before taking the reins from Nico. "Thank you, Nico."

"If we're all ready, I'd like to send Rin to inform her majesty that we'll be departing as soon as she arrives." Umi says as she approaches Eli. The blonde nods in agreement.

"Please do." Umi smiles before giving the other girl her final instructions and watching her dash off towards the castle.

Eli watches as Nico brings Honoka her horse while Maki keeps a hold on Rin's for when she returns.

Excitement laces the air around the group as the time to depart creeps closer and closer. Eli's quite excited to see the other towns and villages that are a part of the Otonokizaka kingdom, but the thing she looks forward to most would be during their final stop of their tour, where they would rest for a couple of days in her home village. Where her family would be and where she could introduce Nozomi to them. Just the thought fills Eli with so much eagerness that she could be mistaken for a little kid.

"One last thing, Captain." Eli's drawn away from the thoughts of Alisa and Nozomi's first interaction by Umi's voice and she turns her full attention to the navy haired girl.

"Our travel plans have us heading towards the grand river first, but there were recently reports of bandits causing havoc around the river. Will we be safe?"

"Already taken care of." Eli says with a smile. "I got a report last night. There were one or two of the bandits that escaped arrest, but Akira and her girls took care of the rest. Should we run across the stragglers, we'll be able to take care of them."

Umi sighs in relief and smiles.

"I'm glad to hear that. I wouldn't forgive myself if we knowingly went into bandit areas and something bad happened to her majesty."

Eli puts a gentle hand on Umi's shoulder, giving the knight a reassuring smile.

"That won't happen while we're around. You can count on that."

Umi gives Eli a warm smile before glancing over to the castle entrance, seeing the door being pushed open by an excited Rin.

"Her Majesty is on her way!" She announces, hopping down the steps before walking over to Maki and her geared up steed.

"Perfect." Eli grins. "Alright everyone! Make any final preparations you need, this is the last call before we head out!"

The squad begins going over their horses, double checking to see if all of their necessities for the trip were present and accounted for while Umi and Hanayo triple check the carriage. Maki looks over her horse to Nico, observing her tightening the saddle straps on Kuro. The tall black horse shakes his head a bit, keeping as still as possible as Nico contently finishes her travel preparations.

"Have you got everything, Nico-chan?" Maki asks. Nico looks over everything once more before turning to her and nodding.

"Everything and then some." She grins and Maki frowns.

"There's a reason we were asked to bring only the necessities." The red haired girl says in a dead panned voice.

"You'll be thanking me later when your boots are soaked and you want nothing but a pair of dry socks." Nico replies, petting Kuro as Maki rolls her eyes.

"I packed plenty of those too."

"Yeah, but I packed more." Nico retorts with a proud smirk. Maki resists the urge to sigh.

"You're a handful sometimes."

"I thought you would have known that by now." A new voice says, causing Maki and Nico to jump a bit in surprise. Their attention is brought over to Nozomi, who grins cheekily at them with a raven perched on her arm.

"There you are! Where the hell have you been? I thought you were supposed to help Maki and I with the horses." Nico's voice has an accusing tone to it as she frowns, putting a hand on her hip and giving Nozomi a slight glare.

"I was until her majesty and her mother requested my assistance." Nozomi replies, still grinning as she strokes the ravens feathers.

"Oh." Nico deflates a bit, letting her hand fall to her side. "Doing what?"

"We wrote and sent out letters to each town and village that will be expecting the Queen's visit. Since we'll be spending the whole Summer touring the country, we tried to give the townsfolk time estimates for when we might arrive."

Maki can't help but smile a bit, glancing between her partner and the purple haired advisor with mild curiosity.

"So we really will be gone all Summer long?" She asks, the excitement creeping into her voice.

"Looks like it." Nozomi answers "I suspect we'll return just before the Queen's birthday. Maybe even right on the date. Who knows!"

The sound of Nozomi's laugh not only causes the bird on her arm to squawk, but also alerts the the blonde haired Captain of her presence. Eli's quick to lead her horse over to the trio with a tiny smile on her face. The sound of her approach doesn't go unnoticed by the three of them, and Nozomi flashes Eli a small smile as the blonde leans in, pecking her lips lightly against Nozomi's.

"How'd it go?" She asks, pulling away to stroke the raven that stands perched on Nozomi's arm with an unamused look.

"Very well. All that's left is for her Majesty to arrive and for me to let this bird be free to send the final letter." She laughs again as the black bird tilts its head and stares at Nozomi expectantly.

Nico and Maki share a smile and the sound of Kotori's voice is heard by their traveling party.

"Hello everyone! Did I keep you waiting long!?" The ash haired girl descends the steps, beaming widely and dressed in a simple travel appropriate gown, a cloak draped over her arms.

"Not at all, your majesty." Umi replies quickly, stepping over to the royal. "We've prepared the carriage nicely for you and made sure all the gifts and your necessities are packed up nicely. We're ready to begin the journey when you are."

"Perfect!" Kotori beams, stepping over to the carriage with a small skip to her step. "Nozomi-chan! You can send the raven out whenever you're ready, then head over to our carriage!"

"With pleasure, your majesty!"

Nozomi strokes the birds feathers one last time before stepping away from the geared up horses. Eli watches with fondness as Nozomi whispers its final destination to it before holding her arm out and sending the raven off with a smile. Eli turns towards her squad, noticing the growing amounts of staff that venture out of the castle to see the group off. Even Kotori's mother stands not too far away, a tiny smile on her lips.

"Looks like we're finally ready." Eli says more to herself than anyone else.

She watches Honoka open the carriage door for Kotori with a goofy grin on her face. Kotori smiles lovingly at her before looking to Hanayo and sharing another smile with the brunette. With the raven sent off, Nozomi heads over towards the carriage, purposely bumping her arm gently against Nico with a small laugh as she makes her way over to where the Queen waits. She follows both Kotori and Hanayo into the large space, thanking Honoka politely as the ginger haired girl shuts the door carefully behind them. Eli smiles fondly before clearing her throat, gaining the attention of the girls near her before speaking in a loud and clear voice.

"Alright everyone, this is it!" She begins, her squad turning and paying full attention to her as the crowd of castle workers become silent. "Mount your horses and get ready to depart."

"Yes Captain!" The enthusiastic and happy voices of her squad mingle together as each of them begin to climb onto their horses,with the exception of Umi, who pulls herself into the front of Kotori's carriage and gathering the reins.

Eli's the final one to climb upon her horse, adjusting her posture and turning to look at the staff and their home. Her squad waits patiently for her and Kotori slides the screen of the carriage door open, her and the girls she sits with silently waiting for Eli's departing speech to begin. The blonde takes in a short breath before speaking in a louder voice.

"The Queen's Otonokizaka tour will be a long journey, and my squad and I will ensure that her safety is our top priority. If all goes as planned, we'll be back to the castle in mid September, before the season is over!"

There's a small bit of applause from the staff and Eli turns towards the gates with a firm gaze. With very little prompting, Eli encourages her horse to move forward and begin stepping towards the gate. Her squad prepares to follow, Maki and Nico not too far behind her. With a flick of her wrist, Umi lightly smacks the reins against the painted and spotted horses pulling the carriage and they begin a slow walk following the three ahead of them. Bringing up the rear, behind the buckskin and blue roan horses carrying extra supplies are Honoka and Rin, bright smiles on their faces as they wave towards their coworkers and friends. Kotori peaks her face out the open window of the carriage with a happy smile as she faces her castle staff.

"Take care everyone! We'll be back when the journey is over!" Kotori chirps, waving out the window to them as they waved in return.

"We'll be waiting, your highness!" A maid calls from the sides.

"The kitchen won't feel the same without you, but we look forward to your return Koizumi-san!" Chef Minami says with a wide smile as she waves.

"Don't forget to take care of yourselves, Honoka-chan, Umi-chan! Her majesty won't forgive you if you don't!" Fumiko grins near the gate entrance. Umi doesn't stop her smile as she nods towards her as thanks.

"Rest whenever you can, Rin-chan! You too Maki-chan and Nico-chan!" Mika calls down afterwards, smiling at the knights as they walk past.

"The same goes to you Captain!" Hideko adds with a laugh. "But with Nozomi-chan there, I'm sure that won't happen."

Eli chuckles a bit as she brings her horse to a stop just at the foot of the gate. She gives one final glance behind her, confirming that her squad was in position. With everyone giving waiting glances towards her, Eli says the final words she needs to for their journey to begin.

"Mika! Open the gate please!"

And without another word, the gate slowly creaks itself open as Mika brings it upward. Eli takes a moment to glance out at the open streets and soon she encourages her horse forward, heading through the castle walls and taking the first steps of the long adventure ahead of them. She encourages her horse to trot forward and before long the nine of them are at the edge of the castle town, the castle they call home in the distance with Eli leading them towards the first village.

* * *

The first day of traveling brings them a great distance away from the castle town. With no inn in sight and everyone weary from the distance they have already traveled, Eli decides it's the perfect time for them to set up camp and relax until morning. Setting up the camp doesn't take too long, especially when her majesty insists they all share the giant tent meant for only her. Umi had protested greatly, not wanting to intrude on the Queen's private quarters, convinced it was shameless for a whole group of knights to sleep within the same area as the Queen.

But when Kotori asks Umi to please reconsider it and explains how happy she would be if she could share her nice, big cozy tent with her friends, Umi really has no other choice than to agree with the royal.

Everyone works together to set it up, making it a very quick and easy process. Now the nine of them are getting ready for their first out of castle meal, Nico and Hanayo being the master chefs on the medium sized open fire that Rin graciously started for them after getting the tent up. Kotori sits on the food trunk not too far away, watching everyone go about doing everything with a frown.

"Your majesty, is something the matter?" Kotori looks up to see Maki standing not too far from her, equipment discarded aside from the sword on her belt. The ash haired girl gives Maki a small smile and shrugs.

"Not exactly?" She admits, watching as Maki silently waits for her to continue. "I just feel a little silly, not being able to help any of you with our camp set up or even the cooking. It doesn't feel right seeing all my friends work while I idly wait by myself for all of you to be finished."

Maki can see why that would bother their Queen. It only takes her a quick moment of thinking before a small idea pops into her mind.

"We have the tent all set up and the nightly watch plan made out, but nobody has decided where they'll sleep yet, your Majesty." The redhead says as she watches Honoka and Umi putter around the large tent. "I uh.. am in charge of setting up the beds tonight so.."

Maki doesn't need to say another word as the Queen smiles brightly, standing up and taking Maki's wrist excitedly into her hand before leading her to the tent.

"It'd be my pleasure to guide you Ma-ki-chan~" She chirps in a sing song voice.

The two of them reach the tent and Maki opens it up for her, letting Kotori step in first before meeting the curious gazes of Umi and Honoka with mild embarrassment.

"T-The Queen wants to help out so I offered to let her plan how we'll sleep." she explains, twirling a piece of her hair. When Kotori calls for her she drops her hand, excusing herself away from Honoka and Umi as the two of them smile at her.

Not too far away Eli, Nozomi, and Rin spend their time making sure the horses are taken care of as well as stacking the gear in even piles for easy gathering the following day. Nozomi and Eli listen intently to Rin as she tells the story of the first time she and Hanayo camped outside back at their home town and the surprising amount of knowledge both she and her brown haired friend had when it came to sleeping in the wilderness.

"I'm a bit surprised." Eli admits a bit sheepishly. "I never would have imagined you were an outdoors expert, Rin."

The ginger haired girl grins at her playfully.

"Kotori-chan may be the Queen of Otonokizaka, but I'm the Queen of the wilderness!" Rin declares with a small laugh. "There wasn't a place I didn't explore as a kid. Poor Kayo-chin was dragged lots of places with me and got in a lot of trouble with me, but she also saved me from doing something stupid a lot too."

Nozomi laughs lightly as she places the last saddle on the ground, looking at Rin with a tiny smile.

"What made you want to become a knight instead of an explorer?" She asks curiously. Rin doesn't even hesitate with her reply as she brushes the back of the horse gently.

"It was my dream!" She flashes the violet haired girl a tiny grin as she pats the horse once her brushing is finished. "When I was a kid, one of the most exciting things to happen in the town was when the knights would visit to inquire about issues or when they were scouting new recruits. We had our local guards of course, but they're nothing compared to knights from the castle. Our little town is full of families happy to stay there and get their farms to grow and many families would pass their farms on to their children and their children's children and so on. But not me."

Eli and Nozomi continue paying full attention to Rin as she continues to smile at them and relay her story.

"I had always wanted to leave home one day. There was nothing for me there since my older sister would be getting the family farm and my older brother planned to become a fisherman. If I stayed there I'd just end up working for my sister and staying at home doing nothing! The only thing worth staying back home for was Kayo-chin. But Kayo-chin didn't want me to stay home. She wanted me to be happy and do what I wanted to do most."

"I didn't really know becoming a knight would be what I wanted until the first time I saw them in action. There was a rogue bull charging through town and nobody could stop this thing. It was huge and so so angry! Kayo-chin and I were terrified! It kept charging and just when we thought somebody was finally gonna get hurt, a knight stepped in and protected the lady! They just swooped in, grabbed the lady, and the bull couldn't stop before it got its horns trapped in the side of a house!"

There's a twinkle to Rin's eyes that causes Nozomi and Eli to smile happily with her, and Rin's laugh fills the small area as she rubs the back of her neck a bit sheepishly.

"Ever since it was all I could think about. I worked really hard to make myself fit enough and once I was of age, Kayo-chin and I traveled to the castle town. It was really hard because I didn't want to say goodbye, but then she met Kotori-chan and things worked out in our favour."

When Nico's voice shouts that dinner will be ready soon, it pulls the trio away from the small story telling. Nozomi reaches out and ruffles Rins hair affectionately, earning a surprised "nya!" from the girl. Eli laughs lightly as Nozomi smiles warmly at her.

"You've achieved your dreams, Rin-chan. Thank you for sharing the story with us."

Rin laughs a bit, pushing herself away from the older girl and winking mischievously.

"I'm still living my dreams Nozomi-chan! And I plan to for the rest of my life! You guys better do it too, my dreams wouldn't be complete without you guys there!"

She does a small skip and bounds off towards the others, yelling Hanayo's name in her excitement as she makes her way towards the fire. Eli and Nozomi follow after double checking all the horses were tied securely and comfortable, greeting the whole group as they made makeshift seats around the fire. The two decide to pitch in and help out with the final preparations needed and before long everyone is sitting comfortably, eating and chatting about the great time they had made in just one day.

With very little prompting, Rin and Honoka began their usual dinner stories. Their conversation starts out as fun adventures the two of them had when they were children, Umi and Hanayo cutting in to add small facts they forgot to describe or important details they missed along the way. Somehow their storytelling evolved into confessing the scariest things that happened to one another, and inviting the rest of the girls to join in on the storytelling.

"Mine was scary, but also a very good thing." Kotori says, looking at Umi and Honoka with a grin. "Because it's how I met Honoka-chan and Umi-chan."

"Hehe, are you sure it wasn't that time we accidentally woke Umi-chan after sleeping for only an hour after late night guard duty?" Honoka jokes, earning a glare from their navy haired lover as the squad laughs.

"Honestly Honoka, if that's the scariest thing that's happened to you than I question what you find terrifying." Umi takes a sip of her water, not bothering to look towards the ginger haired girl.

"It sounds silly but sometimes it's the silly things that scare us most!" Hanayo speaks, her laughter dying down as a small smile rests on her features. "The scariest thing that's ever happened to Rin-chan and I was when her family's alpaca's escaped into town."

Rin nods quickly in agreement.

"It's true!" She confirms, her eyes deadly serious. "Not even the castle break-in's are as terrifying as when they got loose. I'm so glad I had Kayo-chin and her animal calming talents, if she wasn't there I'd be dead!"

"From loose alpacas?" Nico raises her eyebrows in amusement at Rin.

"That or my parents!" She holds a hand dramatically around her neck. "Pop's would've been after my head if I didn't get them back!"

"I-I don't think he would have been that upset Rin-chan," the young brunette stutters, her smile still on her face "But it really was scary."

"I'd find protecting the castle scarier than that." Maki remarks, placing her eating utensils down.

"Eh? Are you saying nothing scared you until you became a knight Maki-chan!?" Rin asks, her eyes wide in awe as she looks at her red haired friend. Maki blushes and shakes her head.

"N-no. There were plenty of things that scared me as a kid. Just nothing as scary as what we do when we protect the castle."

"I agree with Maki." Umi adds in. "While there were a lot of things that scared me when I was younger too, none of those compare to the things we've faced protecting the castle and Kotori. Wouldn't you agree, Captain?"

Everyone's attention is on Eli and she blinks, taking a moment to think before slowly nodding.

"I do agree to a point, though I've never felt as much fear protecting the castle as I have with other things."

"Oh yeah~? What kind of things are those Captain~?" Honoka asks in a knowing voice, as if she has an idea of what might've scared Eli more than protecting the castle. Rin laughs and covers her mouth as Nico glares at the two of them.

"Hey. What did I say about those jokes?" Both Rin and Honoka look at each other like they remembered something important. Eli pinches the bridge of her nose as Maki quirks an eyebrow at Nico.

"What jokes?" She asks, tilting her head curiously.

"You know. The jokes!" Nico looks at Maki in slight exasperation, and the small frown on the red heads face deepens as she struggles to remember what Nico's referring to.

"Hmm, now I'm curious too." Nico tenses a bit as Nozomi speaks, the violet haired girl smiling in a curious manner as she looks at her twin tailed friend. "What kind of jokes were they, Nicocchi?"

Nico sighs, knowing she can't be secretive about them any longer.

"Well, April came along and you still weren't back and not long before those two idiots figured out you and Eli c-con... consummated your marriage. Which you know I mean that was sort of obvious it'd be dumb to think you both wouldn't do that eventually and-"

"Yes yes, Nozomi and I are intimate, just get to the main part." Eli interrupts Nico with a furious blush on her face, unable to look at any of them. Nozomi resists the urge to laugh at Eli's embarrassment as Nico continues.

"A-anyway, The day Eli marked it as nine months of you being gone, we uh, we thought it might be funny to tease her a bit. She was doing a lot better since you left and well to be fair it was mostly Honoka's idea-"

"Hey!"

"-So we jokingly asked Eli if the reason you were gone so long was because maybe you had a baby."

There's an awkward silence following Nico's statement and Maki blushes, all the memories coming back to her from that time. Most of the group expects Nozomi to laugh but when seconds pass with no noise, they look to her curiously and find a large blush dusting her cheeks. Eli and Nico freeze while Rin gapes, the rest of the group suddenly falling silent as Nozomi stays quiet.

"Nozomi..." Umi begins hesitantly "Are you saying you...?" and Nozomi shakes her head furiously.

"No! No it's not that it's just.." she laughs awkwardly, looking to Eli. "It's coincidental. Fate really was cruel to Elichi and I."

Nobody says a word as they wait for Nozomi to elaborate.

"I guess you could consider this one of the scariest things to happen to me." She begins, bringing everyone back to the scary story topic. "When A-Rise and I were busy with the kingdom, I hadn't been keeping track of anything with my body. I didn't even realized I hadn't bled until October, right around Elichi's birthday actually."

Eli's heart beat pounds in her chest. Even if Nozomi had already shared the basic details with her before, it was something that made her heart race regardless. When the girls had made the jokes months before, she was able to keep her cool up until Nico got her alone and then she began to panic. Afraid Nozomi truly was pregnant and the kind of situations she was going through all on her own without Eli there to help and support her through it all. Nico reassured her that if Nozomi was pregnant, Eli would've known because Nozomi would never keep something like that to herself. Eli never gave it a second thought after, but with the way this conversation was going Eli began to second guess herself.

"How does something like that even happen?" Maki asks in the small silence.

"Well Maki-chan, when two people love each other very very much they-"

"Nozomi!" Umi and Maki both interrupt her sentence and she laughs, her blush lessening and the tension from the air clearing just a little bit.

"We had the best healers come and we kept it between ourselves. The kingdom didn't know about my marriage or the finer details of my life back in Otonokizaka, if they found out I was with child it would've been quite the spectacle."

Nozomi places a hand on her abdomen absentmindedly, sighing quietly as she concludes her story.

"They confirmed there was no baby, and it was all the stress I had been under taking its toll on me. I was still scared, considering I still hadn't bled but it did hurt a little. While ideally I would have liked to discover it here with Elichi and you all, a little bit of me was excited for it, but with the healers confirming I wasn't it did sting to think about losing something I thought I might have had."

The group remains quiet, taking in Nozomi's story. Eli takes Nozomi's hand in her own and squeezes it comfortingly. The blonde knew if she were there to experience that, her feelings would have been the exact same as Nozomi's. Kotori looks at her advisor with soft eyes, a hint of understanding in them as the rest keep to themselves. After a short moment, Honoka speaks quietly in an apologetic tone.

"I'm really sorry about the jokes, Eli-chan, Nozomi-chan." She apologizes sincerely. "We honestly thought it would be something that would cheer Eli-chan up while you were gone but.."

Nozomi laughs again, and the genuine happiness in her laugh relieves the small group.

"You don't need to apologize. I didn't tell anybody except Elichi and Nicocchi after I returned. Though they seemed to have forgotten to inform me about the little jokes." She eyes the both of them carefully and Nico turns away from her gaze as Eli sputters.

"T-that's not true, I told you about how I got scared you were but-" She rubs the back of her neck shyly. "I-I was too embarrassed to admit it was from their jokes."

The group laughs again, and the atmosphere returns to the cheery excited one it had been when they began their story tellings. Nozomi looks to her twin tailed friend, encouraging her to bring up one of her scarier childhood memories. Dinner continues just like that, everyone sharing memories of scary times in their life and laughing with one another at the silliness of some of the tales.

When dinner is finished, Umi and Maki are sent to rest for a bit so they wouldn't be exhausted during their shift of the night watch, leaving everyone else to tidy up the leftover food and spend the evening doing whatever they felt like. Rin and Nico decide to give Hanayo a small sword lesson while Eli and Nozomi take a bit of time to themselves, sitting not too far away from the group practicing with swords. Kotori and Honoka sit by the fire, monitoring it and reading a book together as the sun lowers more and more in the sky and the end of their first day of traveling draws to a close.

* * *

Eli stirs under her covers, her eyes slowly opening and taking in the very dim lighting of the tent. She sighs relieved, glad the girls outside were keeping the fire lit as well as they could. Even if it was only a tiny bit of light, it was better than none for the older girl. She turns onto her side, gazing over to the others sleeping soundly.

Kotori is right in the center between Honoka and Hanayo, with Rin snoring softly next to the brunette. Eli squints, finding that Umi and Maki have exited the tent to take the second half of the night watch. This would mean that Nozomi and Nico would be coming to bed soon.

Sure enough the tent flaps pull back as quietly as possible and in stumble Nico and Nozomi. Nico carefully placing her gear down near the entrance and mumbling a good night to her violet haired friend. The black haired girl doesn't bother untying her ribbons as she plops down next to Rin ungracefully, pulling the covers that Maki had been under over her and cuddling in the warmth that lingers there. Eli's eyes look for Nozomi again and she's surprised when her voice quietly speaks from her other side.

"Elichi, you're still awake?"

Eli rolls herself over, tired blue eyes looking over to the violet haired girl who quietly stands next to her. She smiles as Nozomi discards her equipment, placing it gently onto the ground next to Eli's. Once she's finished Eli pulls back the covers and welcomes Nozomi under the warm, cozy blankets with a satisfied hum.

"Not still awake. Just woke up." She sighs contently when Nozomi slips into her arms, a small chuckle coming from her as she snuggles closer to the sleepy blonde.

"It wouldn't have been because of me, would it?" she asks curiously, reaching down and pulling the blankets over them more.

"No, ended up just waking up." She smiles, placing a small kiss on top of Nozomi's head. "In good time too. Now I get to fall asleep looking at your beautiful face."

Nozomi chuckles again tiredly, sleep coming for her quickly now that she was tucked in.

"Aren't you the charmer~?"

Eli snuggles closer to Nozomi, peppering kisses from the top of her head down to her nose and lips. Nozomi's laughs are feathery and contagious and Eli laughs quietly with her. In no time Nozomi is asleep and the knight watches fondly as her lover's breathing evens out carefully, her lips parted and the hint of a smile on her face. Eli places one last kiss on top of the violet hair she loves so much before closing her eyes and letting sleep take her again for the second time that night.

* * *

"Here we are everyone! The first village is in sight!" Eli announces.

Rin excitedly brings her horse to the front, a broad grin on her face as she surveys the area.

"KAYO-CHIN! WE'RE ALMOST THERE!" She shouts excitedly back to her best friend, who sits in the driver's spot of the carriage with a warm smile.

"I see it Rin-chan!" She replies. She glances behind her and knocks on the viewing window and Honoka opens it up with a bright smile.

"Are we there, Hanayo-chan!?" She asks.

"Almost Honoka-chan! Have her majesty look out to her left!" The brunette instructs.

There's a moment of silence before a happy yell comes from inside and Hanayo laughs to herself as the carriage screen slides open.

"ALPACAS!" Kotori shouts in glee. "LOOK AT THEM ALL HONOKA-CHAN!"

"OOOH!" Honoka replies with just as much enthusiasm as they look out to a field with a small herd of fluffy beasts, who look over at the path they trek down curiously.

There are a few chuckles from the squad and they begin to slow their horses down as the entrance to the village gets closer and closer. With permission from Eli, Rin encourages her horse to trot ahead, excitedly entering her small hometown before the rest of them. The sound of her horse attracts the attention of a few curious villagers and Rin pulls her steed to a stop at the center, turning and waiting a bit impatiently for the rest of the group to catch up.

Once the carriage makes its stop at the center square, everyone riding their horses dismounts. More and more villagers gather to see what the commotion is about, soft whispers about the knights and carriage traveling from one person to another. Rin and Nico pull out their horns, waiting patiently for the cue from Eli. Umi takes her place at the carriage door and Eli stands on the other side, nodding to Rin and Nico.

They both inhale deeply before blowing loudly into their horns, attracting the full attention of everyone around them. The lower the horns carefully and Eli speaks in a loud and clear voice.

"Announcing the arrival of her majesty, Minami Kotori!"

Umi opens the door and Kotori steps out of the carriage, a warm smile on her face as she faces the villagers. There's a small gasp from different members of the audience as they gaze upon the royal with curiosity and wonder.

"Y-Your majesty!" An older man says, quickly taking off his hat and bowing. "We've only just received the letter about your arrival, please excuse us for being unprepared for your visit!"

Kotori smiles a bit more as she steps further from the carriage, keeping her eyes on the older gentleman. A small squeak comes from Rin, who does her best to keep her excitement contained as the Queen talks with the villager.

"Raise your head, kind sir." Kotori begins. "We've been a lot faster than we expected, it's quite alright that you're a bit unprepared."

The man smiles thankfully at her and holds his hat between his calloused fingers, glancing towards her knights.

"My name is Hoshizora Satoshi. We do have a place for you and your guards to spend the night. If you're alright with spending it at my own home I would be happy to house you all." He says in a content voice.

"That would be lovely!" Kotori says, her eyes twinkling as she turns to her squad with her bright smile. "Would that be alright with you, Captain?"

Eli doesn't hesitate to nod.

"It would be perfect, your majesty." She replies.

"Ah, and you said your name was Hoshizora?!" Kotori's eyes sparkle even more as the older gentleman nods.

"Y-yes, that's right your majesty." He says with a bit of surprise. Kotori turns to one of her ginger haired knights, holding back a laugh as she can see Rin fighting back the urge to interrupt their conversation.

"Rin-chan! Is this your father?!" Kotori asks excitedly. Rin nods, a bright grin forming on her face and the older man looks over to her with wide eyes.

"Rin?! That's you?!" The smile on his face is everything and more and Rin laughs a bit, walking over to Kotori and her father with a bright grin.

"It's me Pops!" She flashes him a catlike grin and the older man laughs, reaching out and ruffling his daughter's hair affectionately.

"Look at you! You got taller!" He turns to the villagers with excitement in his eyes.

"Everyone! It's Rin! Look at our village rascal, all grown up and protecting our Queen!"

There are a few laughs from the small crowd as Rin grins, rubbing the back of her neck and laughing.

"It really is something right?!" She says excitedly. "Wait til you all see Kayo-chin again! She's more important than I am! She's one of the Queen's advisors now!"

"R-Rin-chan!" Hanayo squeaks and attracts the attention of the rest of the group. She blushes as everyone's eyes fall to her and Rin's father's smile matches the one his daughter wears.

"Our little animal whisperer too! Get over here Hanayo-chan!" He laughs, waving his arm for her to come over.

Hanao doesn't hesitate to move forward and is pulled into a hug from the other man, who gives her a tight squeeze before letting go and putting his arms around the two of them.

"You two have made us really proud, you know that?!" He says happily, turning his attention from them to the Queen. "We don't have a lot of special things going on here, but knowing two children from our tiny little town work important jobs for our Queen and her kingdom every single day couldn't make us any happier!"

"Aww, Pops! You're embarrassing us!" Rin laughs a hint of red dusting her cheeks, hugging her father back with one arm and beaming.

"Y-you really are too kind, Hoshizora-san." Hanayo smiles at the man who is basically a second father to her.

"It really is a treat to see you both." He says warmly, turning back to the Queen. "Thank you and your staff for taking care of our girls. Though they probably do take care of themselves and each other as well."

"The pleasure is ours, Hoshizora-san!" Kotori says with a warm smile. "Hanayo-chan, you have my permission to take the rest of the day off if you would like. Captain, would it be alright if we let Rin-chan have a bit of the day off as well?"

"Of course, your Majesty." Eli smiles towards Rin before looking to her squad. "Everyone else, let's ensure the Queen's first visit is a good one."

"Yes Captain!" The girls reply in unison, smiles on their faces. Rin's father turns to them, letting go of Hanayo and his daughter.

"I will lead you all to my home! It's only a short walk down the path, please follow me and we'll get you all settled comfortably there!"

The group follows the older man as he talks animatedly to Kotori about the village and the things they do there. Despite it being a very tiny farming community, everyone works hard to produce the goods that they are capable of making and Kotori is intrigued to learn just how important the alpacas they raise are. Rin and Hanayo add in their own little quips and comments and the rest of the squad patiently listens to the facts and stories.

Once they reach the Hoshizora residence, the group meets Rin's older sister and mother, both spitting images of her aside from their longer, darker hair. The squad immediately gets to work storing their gear in safe spots and unpacking the carriage while Rin and Hanayo offer to give Kotori a small tour of the Hoshizora and Koizumi farms. Kotori doesn't hesitate to say yes and the two younger girls along with Rin's elder sister lead her on a grand tour.

Rin's Father and Mother stay with the squad, helping them unload all their goods and guiding them on where they can let the carriage and their horses rest. It takes no time at all with the older couple contributing and they finish in good time.

"Captain, may I have a moment?" Rin's mother asks curiously, glancing over the rest of the squad as they rest.

"Not at all, Hoshizora-san." Eli says with a kind smile. "How can I help you?"

Bright yellow eyes scan the group again before she looks back to Eli, a motherly smile on her face.

"Could you direct me to Sonada Umi and Nishikino Maki? I'd like to personally thank them for all the work they've done to help Rin-chan become the knight she is. She speaks very fondly of both of them in her letters." There's a sheepish hint to her voice and Eli chuckles lightly.

"Of course. Sonoda Umi is the knight over there, with the long blue hair." Eli directs her to Umi, who is in a deep conversation with Rin's father. "And Nishikino Maki is the red haired girl there." Eli then directs her towards Maki, who listens to something Nico says with a small smile playing on her lips.

"I see! Thank you very much Captain!" The dark orange haired woman grins before making her way over to Maki first and introducing herself.

Eli watches fondly as the woman takes Maki's hand, shaking it excitedly before pulling her into an abrupt hug. The surprise on Maki's face is priceless and Eli laughs at the scene along with Nico. There's a small nudge to her left and she glances over to see Nozomi, a tiny grin on her own face from seeing the scene as well.

"You can really tell this is Rin-chan's family, can't you?" She asks amused and Eli nods.

"Definitely." She agrees, watching Rin's mom move from Maki to Umi. The two of them laugh as the same thing happens to the navy haired girl, who is utterly speechless and unable to form a coherent response as Rin's mother thanks her too.

Kotori, Hanayo and Rin return shortly after and with everything done, the group sets out to have a tour of the small village before spending the evening with the Hoshizoras and the Koizumis, who join them all for a fun filled dinner that feels just like the ones they have back home at the castle.

* * *

"Geeze, it's hot today." Rin whines, stretching her stiff arms.

"I'll say." Honoka grumbles, "I can't believe how sunburnt I am. The sun is unforgiving.."

The ginger haired girl rubs her reddened cheeks in discomfort, frowning form the light sting that lingers in the wake of her fingers.

They'd been on the road for a couple weeks now, mid July creeping up on them quicker than expected. The day before they had stopped at one other village, spending the day and meeting the people who lived there. It was a quaint little place, and everyone enjoyed the resting time they got to spend there.

Umi reaches through the pack on her saddle, frowning towards Honoka as she does.

"You wouldn't have this problem if you applied the sun block ointment from the apothecary regularly throughout the day." Umi scolds, bringing out the jar with the aloe rub. "Luckily we knew this might happen. Come over here, I'll help you apply this one."

"Fiiine." Honoka whines, sluggishly stepping over to the navy haired girl. She eyes Rin and Maki carefully before staring at Umi, a small frown appearing on her face. "Hey, you guys are out in the sun just as much as I am, how come you're not as red as me?!"

"Because we put on the ointment periodically through the day." Umi sighs, rubbing the lotion on Honoka's very burnt nose, causing her to wince slightly. "I told you, if you did the same you wouldn't be burnt. You'd be tanned like the rest of us."

"Well, except Nico and Nozomi." Rin says sympathetically, looking over to the two who suffer the same, sunburnt fate Honoka does. They watch as Eli holds another jar of aloe rub towards them, an amused smirk on her tanned face as Nico and Nozomi quietly thank her and apply it to their own burnt skin.

"Ehh, I guess living near the mountains all your life affects the amount of sun block you use, huh?" Honoka asks, closing her eyes as Umi rubs the last of the lotion on her face.

"Definitely so." Umi agrees, closing the jar. "There. We'll apply more before we leave and when we stop for the night, you'll be doing it again."

"Okaaaay." Honoka drawls. The other three join them and despite the fact that she matches Honoka shade for shade, Nozomi laughs.

"Looks like we're the tomato trio." She says with a playful smile. "We better be careful. Maki-chan might mistake us for real tomatoes and try to eat us. While that's not really a problem for Nicocchi, we certainly don't want to be-AH!"

Nozomi's joke is instantly cut off by Nico's fingers pulling at her very, very burnt cheeks. Honoka laughs and Nozomi forces herself away from Nico's grip, rubbing the sore spots gently. She grins despite the pain she now feels and Nico frowns at her.

"Not funny." Is all she says before making her way to the nice shady area near the horses.

Nozomi, Eli and Honoka share a laugh before following her, choosing to stay out of the sun with her rather than let their burns get worse. Eli pauses her steps, frowning as the feeling of being watched comes to her. She frowns more, glancing around to see what her squad is up to.

To her far left near the carriage Hanayo and Kotori are resting, Maki joining them and starting a small conversation. Rin and Umi are leading the horses that pull the carriage to the river, allowing them to have a good long drink as they two talk one another. The other three now sit in the shade, Nico's voice being background noise as Eli continues to scan the area around them.

There's a handful of trees and shrubs surrounding them, making for perfect hiding and ambush spots for anybody trying to creep up on them. Eli narrows her eyes, quickly stepping over to her saddle and pulling out the map that was folded neatly inside the satchel attached to it. She scans over the map and the trail she had been drawing to document how far they were on their journey. She quickly determines the distance the group made since their departure that morning and she frowns, seeing a tiny 'x' marking a warning right near the area they currently were resting.

"Of course." She mumbles to herself.

Without wanting to panic her squad and give whoever watches them clues that she figured it out, Eli folds the map and walks over to the three resting near the carriage. The feeling of being watched begins to grow more evident and she keeps a hand near the hilt of her sword, preparing herself for whatever is to come.

"Pardon my interruption, your majesty." the Captain says in a formal tone, her voice quiet but level. "I know we've just begun to rest, but I believe it would be in our best intentions if we made this as quick as possible."

The unsaid things are heard loud and clear and everyone stands, not needing any further instructions. Maki makes her way to the river first to where Umi and Rin are while Kotori and Hanayo slowly take in Eli's silent instructions.

"I guess we'll be heading a bit further, Hanayo-chan." The Queen says in a calm voice. Hanayo nods in agreement.

"I-it would appear so K-Kotori-chan." Hanayo can't help her stutters as she stands up, opening the carriage door carefully. "H-here, let's wait inside the carriage."

Eli glances over to the trio near the river and watches as Maki fills the two in on Eli's suspicions. Umi gives instructions to Rin and the ginger haired girl immediately makes her way to the pack horses, discarding them of the weight they carry so they could pull the carriage while the other two are able to have a break. Maki takes the horses Umi and Rin had been tending to, leading them back to the carriage and tying them to the back end tightly.

"Maki, stay near the carriage." Eli instructs firmly.

"Yes Captain." Maki replies, stepping in front of the door. Her hand rests near her sword, ready to draw it at any point in time. Eli quickly moves from the carriage to the tree the remaining three girls rested under.

"I'm sorry everyone, we'll be leaving as soon as the horses are ready." Eli says quietly, reaching her hand out to Nozomi. The violet haired girl frowns a bit, hesitantly taking hold of Eli's hand and pulling herself from the ground.

"Is something the matter?" Nozomi asks, Nico and Honoka standing up.

"Nothing major." Eli fibs slightly, giving Nozomi's hand a tiny reassuring squeeze. "Head for the carriage, alright? Nico, you go with her."

"Yes Captain." Nico takes Nozomi's free hand, pulling her away from Eli. The violet haired girl frowns but willingly follows Nico, her eyes scanning the area around them to find whatever it was that is spooking Eli.

Maki steps to the side for Nico and Nozomi and without saying anything, Nico opens the carriage for her. Nozomi hesitates, placing her hand on her own sword but Nico shakes her head. The violet haired girl bites her lower lip before obediently climbing inside, sitting across from a nervous Hanayo and a calm Kotori. The raven haired girl shuts the door firmly behind her, locking eyes with Maki for a short moment before moving to the front of the carriage, ready to help Rin with getting the horses in their harnesses.

Umi approaches Eli and Honoka, a serious expression on her face and her bow in hand and a quiver of arrows on her shoulder.

"The sooner we get out of here the better." She says lowly.

"Is it an enemy?" Honoka asks, looking between Eli and Umi. Eli's eyes look around the area, a frown deepening on her face.

"Possibly. We've decided to rest right around where the bandits may be hiding." Eli murmurs. "The lingering bandits are probably waiting for the right moment to str-"

"CAPTAIN, LOOK OUT!" Honoka shouts, shoving Eli out of the way as an arrow zooms past the three of them, sinking into the tree with a loud 'thunk.'

Without even blinking Umi draws her bow, grabbing an arrow and aiming directly from the direction the enemy's came from. Honoka unsheathes her sword and Eli steadies herself, pulling her own out and preparing herself for the oncoming attack.

"NICO! RIN! GET THAT CARRIAGE OUT OF HERE, NOW!" She barks.

But the commotion from the arrow and shouting causes the horses to spook and before Rin can even fit the second harness onto the horse it shrieks loudly, forcing the ginger haired girl to step back as it dashes forward and away. Nico curses as the horse runs out of sight and immediately turns to find Rin doing her best to keep the first horse calm.

"IT'S NO GOOD, THE HORSES ARE TOO SCARED!" Nico shouts the reply as Rin's attempts to calm the large mammal begin to work.

Eli and Honoka are left dodging arrows and protecting Umi from the hidden enemy. Eli's eyes darken at Nico's declaration as she quickly puts together plan b. As she successfully dodges a third arrow, she shouts the plan for her squad to hear.

"FALL BACK. TOP PRIORITY IS PROTECTING HER MAJESTY! DO NOT LET ANYBODY NEAR THAT CARRIAGE!"

Umi lets another arrow loose towards the bushes, and a pained shout is the only thing they hear. Satisfied by the sound, the trio take it as their moment to dash towards the carriage. Maki and Nico stand on one side of the carriage, protecting the door the princess sits closest to while Rin protects the other side. Honoka sprints around to the other side, her eyes scanning to see where any potential enemies may appear from.

Umi pulls herself to a higher spot on the carriage, settling herself carefully on the roof. She prepares her bow with another arrow, keeping it low and scanning around with her keen eyes. Despite the dangers the higher and open spot will put her in, the navy haired girl would be able to see exactly where the enemies hide. She looks over to where the arrows came from earlier and frowns seeing the unknown villain treating their wound swiftly.

"Captain! The shrubs, they're preparing for another strike!" Umi readies her bow until a shout from Honoka forces her to pause.

"TWO COMING FROM THIS END!" The blue eyed girl says. Umi disregards the other archer and swivels around swiftly, loosing her arrow and piercing one of them directly in the shoulder.

The bandit shouts loudly and falls back, no attempt to get up being made as their friend continues to dash towards Honoka and Rin. The ginger girls prepare themselves and once the enemy is only feet away, Rin makes the first strike. Metal grinds against metal and the cries of more bandits can be heard. Umi looks to the other side of the carriage and pales as the sight of five more bandits appear.

"HONOKA! OTHER SIDE!" She shouts, aiming an arrow to the bushes where the archer prepares to loose another one of their own arrows.

Umi is quick and merciless when she lets this arrow fly, watching it pierce the bandit in the chest. She watches them collapse to the ground, unmoving and lifeless. The navy haired girl exhales slowly, lowering her bow and watching her comrades.

Eli is the first to strike at an oncoming bandit, nothing but anger reflecting off those icy blue irises. Nico is the second to make contact with a bandit, and more sounds of metal against metal echo around the area. Maki keeps herself planted by the carriage door, not daring to stray from it in the off chance that a bandit slips past her comrades and goes directly for their Queen. Honoka's as fast as ever and successfully takes out the first bandit she comes to, striking them in the shoulder with her sword.

They fall to the ground, dropping their weapon and crying out in pain. Honoka doesn't hesitate to kick the weapon away powerfully, watching it skid across the dirt ground . Umi prepares another arrow, watching her squad mates carefully. Two are on Eli while another heads towards Honoka, who defends herself as they charge at her. Nico seems to be fine for now, carefully blocking and striking at her own enemy. The navy haired girl frowns, trying to get a better shot at the two Eli fends off, but with their fast movements it's too dangerous for her to aim towards them.

With careful movements Umi climbs down from the carriage, peering inside to check on the three girls. Hanayo has moved from her spot next to Kotori, nervously sobbing into Nozomi as the older girl holds and comforts her, whispering quiet reassuring words that the everyone would be alright. Kotori appears to be calm but the fear in her eyes is evident. Umi silently hopes this scuffle ends as quickly as possible. She hops down to the ground and looks at Maki.

"Go!" She says, unsheathing her sword. "Rin and I will take care of the carriage, help out the other three!"

Maki doesn't need to be told twice as she dashes into battle, heading straight for the second bandit that Eli fights against.

"Captain, your left!" Maki shouts, and without even voicing a reply Eli ducks, the enemy missing her completely and stumbling over their feet.

Maki's sword quickly collides with theirs and soon she too is engaged in a fight against the bandits. Swords clashing against swords echo around the knights, the bandits losing confidence as each of them show no signs of exhaustion throughout the battles. A shout from Rin's side followed by a pained groan signals her battle is over, and Umi mentally thanks every higher being for Rin's victory.

The next to go down is Honoka's opponent, who loses their footing and collapses from the strength of Honoka's strike. She easily disarms them, sending their weapon quite the distance from them with another swift kick of her leg. Umi's spirits brighten and she's filled with pride at the fact Honoka has improved so much that she took out two of the enemies. Her eyes turn to the remaining three matches, worriedly watching as Nico's opponent towers over her.

The worry doesn't last long as the three matches immediately come to an end. Nico's height made for a perfect opening as she uses her handle of her sword to forcefully jab into her opponent's abdomen, winding them completely and knocking them off their feet. Maki is next, disarming the person in front of her with little force and knocking them roughly to the ground. It all ends with Eli kicking the bandit she faces off of their feet, surprising them as they land ungracefully onto their rear.

With swords pointed at their throats, the small group quickly surrenders. Eli doesn't need to voice her command as Umi walks over to the first bandit Honoka took out, who currently lay clutching their useless shoulder. She carefully binds their hands together, ignoring the visible wince they give as she tightens the rope around their wrists. Rin appears from the other side with the two opponents she and Umi took out, wrists tied and weapons missing. She guards the injured bandit and the ones she arrested as Umi moves on to the next.

Before long the group forces themselves to backtrack, all alive criminals tied and walking in a line between Eli and Umi, who keep close eyes on them. Maki and Honoka ride on either side of the carriage as Nico sits in the driver's spot, Kuro taking the place of the horse that went missing. The ginger haired girl sits next to Nico with a smile on her face despite all the earlier commotion and keeping an eye open for her horse.

They return to the village by nightfall, the criminals being escorted to a holding cell while their group is given a place to stay at their inn for another night. Rin is offered a horse from one of the villagers but she declines, hopeful about finding her own horse in the next couple days. The girls have a short celebration amongst themselves for successfully fighting off all the bandits and keeping Kotori safe. There's a moment where Hanayo gets teary from recalling the incident and it's Kotori and Rin that initiate the giant, comforting group hug. It's a nice ending to an eventful day for them all.

* * *

The group is back on track in no time, and after three days of walking and searching, Rin's horse is found safe and sound on a farm with a kind elderly couple. To thank them for their kindness, Kotori gives them a hefty amount of gold, apologizing for the fact they cannot stay and help them with their daily farm chores like she wants to. The couple is grateful for the offer anyway and see's them off with happy smiles and loud thank you shouts.

When nighttime comes and every decides to turn in, it's Nico and Maki who are scheduled for the first shift of the night watch. Maki piles more firewood into the flames as everyone makes their way into the tent, doing their best to not disturb Eli and Honoka, who turned in earlier that evening so they would be able to wake up and do the second half of the night shift.

"Thank you for your hard work, Maki-chan, Nico-chan." Kotori says with a sleepy smile. "We'll see you in the morning."

"Sleep good, your Majesty" Maki replies.

"We'll keep you all safe." Nico adds with a smile.

"I have full confidence in you two." the royal laughs before stepping into the tent. Nozomi follows not far after, giving a sleepy wave to the two of them.

"See you in the morning, Nicocchi, Maki-chan. No frisky business while you're on duty~" Nozomi laughs at the glares she earns from the both of them before following Kotori inside the tent.

"That Nozomi.." Nico shakes her head, sitting herself down on a chair near the tent. Maki takes the seat next to her wordlessly, humming a bit as she does.

The red haired girl waits until everyone in the tent is settled, and once silence overtakes them she doesn't hesitate to reach out for Nico's hand, shyly taking it into her own and looking away with a small blush. Nico laughs lightly, squeezing Maki's hand before intertwining their fingers.

"So forward Maki-chan~" She teases. "Didn't Nozomi just say no frisky business?" There's a teasing glint in her eyes and Maki frowns.

"T-that's not..! Nico-chan!" Maki's face is a light pink as Nico laughs quietly, purposely pulling Maki and her chair closer.

"Geeze, you're too easy to tease. No wonder Nozomi doesn't hesitate to go for us, you get flustered so easily." The raven haired girl tilts her head upwards and Maki turns to her, a tiny frown on her face.

"I'll get used to it eventually!" Maki retorts. Nico laughs lightly as she continues to stare upward and Maki's gazes softens as she watches Nico.

This is nice. Nico's here, and she's stargazing. Two of Maki's favourite things, and yet she can't turn her eyes away from the black haired girl she loves so much. Right there, in the dim light of the fire and underneath the everlasting blanket of stars, Nico truly looks her greatest. There is no sign of fear or worry on her face, only happiness and love. Maki could feel her heart beat increase and found it hard to believe that there's still moments like this where she would fall deeper and deeper in love with the other girl.

"You know, it kinda sucks that we know so little about the stars." Nico observes as she stares up at the sky, illuminated by thousands of bright specks of light yet still so dark. "Once an astronomer was passing through Akiba's castle town and Nozomi and I took a trip out of the castle to see him. He didn't mind sharing everything that he knew about the stars with us. It wasn't a lot, but it was pretty neat."

"I can imagine" Maki remarks, her thumb stroking Nico's knuckles as she keeps her gaze focused on her dark haired partner. "There used to be someone who studied the stars in Otonokizaka too. She never called herself an astronomer, but she knew more than anyone else in town did about the stars. She passed away before I became a knight, but I would go listen to her star facts often."

Nico brings her gaze from the stars to Maki, giving her a small smile as she tilts her head.

"What kind of things did you learn?" She asks curiously, ruby irises focusing on Maki.

Maki takes a moment to remember all the tiny facts she learnt and begins by pointing her free hand up to the sky.

"The star right over there is the North star."

There's a tiny smile on the red haired girl's face as she begins telling Nico every little thing she knows about this specific star and what other astronomers and story tellers theorized about it. It isn't very detailed but that doesn't stop Nico's smile from growing as she watches Maki get excited and delve into another star fact, this time about a cluster astronomers call Ursa Minor.

Maki doesn't realize Nico's staring at her with a wide smile until she spares a glance towards her, pausing her conversation and feeling her ears burn a dark shade of red.

"W-what?" She asks. Nico shakes her head, laughing lightly.

"Nothing. It's really cute how happy you are right now. I don't think there's a single star out there that can match how bright you shine when you're happy."

Maki's face turns a completely darker shade of red and Nico doesn't hold back her laughter as the redhead takes a moment to bury her face into her hands, unable to respond to Nico's cute and very cheesy comment.

* * *

The end of July comes and goes, along with the first couple weeks of August. It's hot as ever, but everything is going better than scheduled. The visit at the second last village was short and sweet, and the town welcomed Kotori by having a large feast to celebrate the occasion. The group had a lot of fun singing, dancing and sharing a meal with the small group of villagers and when it was time to say goodbye the next day, everyone was well rested, full, and excited for the last stop of their summer long journey: Eli's home town.

The forest was still a day's journey away, but the group was making good time, especially since today was cloudier, protecting them from the harsh sun rays that would be beating down on them otherwise. Nozomi and Honoka share the carriage with Kotori, the two of them being the ones on the second half of the night watch the night before. Eli and Umi travel behind the group today, while Rin and Hanayo sit on the carriage with Hanayo being in control of the reins as Maki walks her horse not too far away from them on Hanayo's other side. Nico leads the way as they all focus on the road ahead of her while Rin relays the nights exciting events before she and Maki crawled into bed.

"I'm telling you Kayo-chin, this owl was _HUGE._ It had to be as big as at least seven ravens! Maki was there, she can vouch for me!"

"Owls are pretty big birds Rin-chan." She says with a small giggle. "I'm glad you got to see such a big one though. It must have been a very wise one that's lived a very long time."

"That or it was just a monster!" Rin exclaims, lifting her hands in excitement as Maki and Hanayo laugh lightly.

The sounds of a galloping horse in the distance catches their attention and the three of them abruptly stop laughing as Nico holds her hand up, informing Hanayo to slow the carriage down. The brunette does as requested and pulls on the reins lightly, causing the horses to go from a slow walk to a short stop. Maki encourages Santa to step forward so they are level with Nico, squinting her eyes.

"Is that a traveler?" She asks and Nico shrugs.

"I can't make out the form well, but it looks like they're heading this way." She comments.

Honoka peers her head out the carriage window, squinting her eyes to see why they may have stopped. Eli and Umi quickly ride around the carriage, their horses swiftly coming to the front and stopping right next to the black and red haired girls. Eli and Umi's sharp eyes catch the finer details as the rider gets closer and closer to them, and the hands that rest on the hilts of their swords relax as the bulge of armour is noticed.

"They might be a knight." Eli determines. "They've got armour on underneath their cloak."

Nozomi peers out the other window, a confused look on her face.

"The Queen would like to know if we're stopping here for a rest." She says hesitantly, the mood obviously not the type for a break. Rin turns and shakes her head, voice low as she whispers the reply to Nozomi.

"There's someone riding towards us. The Captain says it might be another knight, so we could be stopping."

Nozomi nods and pulls her head back inside, relaying the information to Kotori.

The mysterious rider gets closer and closer, more details about their clothing becoming clearer as they do. As they get nearer, it's Umi who recognizes the soft white of the travel cloak and she blinks as she voices a guess on who it might be.

"A-rise?"

The five who watch as the knight gets closer look at Umi questioningly but sure enough, the exact cloaks the belong to the elite knight force of Akiba is crystal clear as the rider slows their horse down the moment they are only feet away from the group. Her charcoal black stallion huffing as his rider brings him to a slow walk and an eventual stop. Eli and Umi let their hands fall away from their weapons as the rider lifts her hand up, pulling down the hood of her cloak and smiling fondly towards the group.

"Captain Toudou?" Eli asks bewildered as Erena nods.

"It's good to see you again, Captain Ayase."

The gang makes their way out of the path, moving the carriage to the side of the road and setting up a few supplies to have a small break as they talk with the Akiba Captain.

"What brings you out here?" Nozomi asks once she gets the chance, sitting herself down Erena.

"Just a small mission." The Captain replies. "Her majesty hoped her letter would catch you before your Summer asventure began, but when we received a reply from the previous Queen Minami, her majesty deployed me out to meet up with you all."

"How did you even know where we might be?" Umi asks with a frown. "There's no way this was just coincidence."

Erena laughs as she digs through her satchel, pulling out the reply letter as well as a map and a list of travel details.

"I came prepared. The Queen's mother included a list of the journey details, as well as time estimates. The map says you would be traveling along the border before heading to this village in the forest, so I just waited it out at a village along our border until the right time, then set out to find you all."

Umi's face shows how impressed she is by the finer details and Kotori laughs lightly before facing the Akiba knight.

"How can we help you, Captain?" She asks with a warm smile.

Erena puts away the the other parchments before digging around her satchel again. She pulls out a small, folded up piece of parchment gingerly.

"I have a delivery." She replies, holding the folded paper out towards Nico.

"Huh?" Nico blinks surprised. "For… me?"

"For you, Yazawa Nico." Erena confirms, her smile never leaving her face.

Nico hesitantly reaches out, taking the folded paper from Erena. She isn't sure if she should unfold it and read its contents until Maki gives her a small nudge.

"Captain Toudou came all this way just to give you that. You should read it." She encourages. Nico looks from the parchment to Maki, before glancing back to Erena.

"What- What's it about?" She asks nervously.

"You'll have to see for yourself, Yazawa." Erena says. She's still smiling, which proves to be a good sign to the raven haired girl.

Nico slowly unfolds the parchment, carefully holding it in her hands as if the thing would turn to dust if she wasn't delicate with it. She reads the first line and all delicacy is gone as her fingers grip the parchment tightly, a large crinkling sound being made and her eyes welling up with tears. Rin and Honoka sit up more excitedly and Nozomi gets a worried gaze, looking over to Erena seriously.

"Erena, what is it?"

Erena gives Nozomi a softer smile.

"We found them." Is all she says.

Nozomi's eyes light up and she turns excitedly to Nico, whose eyes are still very watery as a slow smile forms on her lips. She hugs the letter to her chest tightly, a couple tears falling as she holds it like it's the most important thing in the world.

"They're alive." She whispers, and the group finally makes the connection.

"Nico-chan!" Kotori exclaims, a wide smile on her face. "Is it your siblings?!"

"Y-yeah!" Nico's voice cracks and she wipes her eyes with one of her hands. "It is! It's a letter from my little sister, Kokoro!"

"What's it say?!" Rin asks ecstatically, leaning forward. "Is it okay if we know?!"

Nico laughs and her voice is raw, full of many mingling emotions as she nods.

"Y-yeah! I'll read it!" She sniffles a bit, unable to stop smiling. Maki's eyes soften at her happy lover, knowing nothing could make this trip better than the moment they were all witnessing.

Nico takes a moment to gather herself and leans against Maki comfortably. Maki doesn't protest, enjoying the press of Nico against her as she clears her throat. The raven haired girl pulls the parchment away from her chest and begins reading.

"Dear Sis," Nico's voice cracks again and she laughs once more, wiping at her eyes again as more tears began to form.

"Nico Nii! You made it! I'm so happy that I cried and cried! I'm so glad you're okay. Queen Tsubasa offered to send a letter from me to you. I hope you get it soon!"

"There are so many things I want to say and tell you. There are so many things I want to ask you too. Maybe we could become pen pals now?! Haha, just kidding. That would be hard since you don't know where we live now."

"Queen Tsubasa says I should tell you what happened after you and Nozomi-chan escaped, but first I have to tell you that Kokoa and Kotarou love you and miss you. They're watching me write this right now! (They cried a lot too but Kotarou would deny it if you ever asked.) But anyways..."

"It was.. It was really tough Nico Nii. Mama was shouting a lot, and I woke up Kokoa and Kotarou because we were worried you both got caught. I snuck out to the stable to make sure Kuro was gone, but that's when I saw the guards grab Mama. I almost ran to get her until I heard somebody shout 'Burn them out!'. That's when I went to grab Kokoa and Kotarou instead."

There's a heavy atmosphere as the gang listens to these parts. Eli's hand finds its way to Nozomi's, linking their fingers and giving a reassuring squeeze as she's reminded of one of the worst nights of her life. Nico leans into Maki more and the redhead slips her arm around her, a faint blush staining her cheeks as she presses a tiny kiss to the top of Nico's head, not caring that their friends see the public display of affection. Nico takes a short breath before continuing to read the letter.

"We didn't take anything but the clothes on our backs. They soon came towards the stable and tore it apart. We were hiding behind it, but no guards thought to look or check if there was anyone there. There was a shout to somebody saying that there was nobody around and once most of them were gone, we made our way towards the town as quickly as we could. We wanted to get help, but nobody was awake and we didn't want the guards coming after us too."

Kotori sniffles and Umi takes her hand gingerly as Honoka lets Kotori's head rest on her shoulder. Hanayo and Rin listen intently, not knowing how much longer the hard parts of this story might last.

"That's when we met Maria." A tiny smile grows on Nico's face as she continues reading. "Maria is a traveling entertainer. She dances and sings along with her friends Himeno, Nagi, and Yuka. They travel all around Akiba and other countries, performing fun dances and neat tricks with music and a really fun caravan! Maria had heard the commotion with the guards and Mama as they were returning to the castle. Mama had been shouting our names over and over, begging and pleading for somebody to go save us."

"I told Maria about what happened and after that, she offered to take us in. We were really scared, and since we didn't have a home to go back to and only each other, we decided to go with her."

"Ever since, it's been a lot of fun learning how to perform. Kokoa and I are incredible dancers, and it might be hard to believe but Kotarou can really sing!"

Nico laughs a bit out loud at that fact and Nozomi doesn't hide her own teary smile.

"That's where we've been this whole time. We stayed low and traveled a lot. We even went over the mountain to where Maria's home country is! But we missed when Nozomi-chan came back into power because of that."

"By the time we came back to Akiba, Nozomi-chan and Queen Tsubasa were on their way to Otonokizaka, so we traveled to the smaller villages to do our performances and came back to the castle town later. We performed for Queen Tsubasa and she knew right away who we were!"

"I guess that part isn't hard to imagine though, since I look just like you now Sis. I'm sixteen now, so many people at the castle think that I'm you too. It's what I'm most proud about after my dancing."

"We really miss you Nico Nii. We're so glad you're okay and that you're happy in Otonokizaka. There isn't much more space to fit anything else, but I hope Otonokizaka continues to be good to you and that one day, we can see each other again. We'll call it a Kokoro promise, okay?!"

"We'll be excitingly waiting until then." Nico smiles more, folding the paper up and saying the concluding line. "Love, Kokoro."

She turns to Erena, giving her a sincere smile and bowing her head.

"Thank you, Erena." She lifts her head, the smile never faltering and taking the long haired girl by surprise. "Thank you so much."

"It was my pleasure." The Captain says in a softer voice. "Their caravan travels all over, but I'm sure they will be back in the castle town before they leave the country again. If you'd like, I can stay the night with your camp and deliver a letter from you to them before they continue their journey."

Before Nico can say anything, Kotori turns excitedly to Hanayo, who shoots up from her seat.

"Hanayo-chan!"

"Got it!"

The brunette dashes to the carriage, stepping inside of it and burying through some supplies. She emerges from it, blank parchments in one hand and a quill and some ink and the other. Eli smiles a bit, catching on to their idea and turning to Kotori.

"Shall we rest here for the night then, your Majesty? It's early, but we'll leave earlier in the morning to make up for it."

"Absolutely Captain." Kotori replies. "Let's begin getting camp set up! Oh, except Nico-chan. She has letters to write~."

Wordlessly, everyone stands and begins camp preparations, aside from Nico. Erena joins in on the camp set up while Nico brainstorms the things she wants to say to her beloved siblings. She sighs lightly, staring at the quill before smiling.

"Might as well just tell them how I feel." she says out loud to herself. Not far out of earshot are Nozomi and Maki, and the two share a smile with each other as they hear Nico voice out the first sentence of her letters.

"Dear Kokoro..."

* * *

The following day they all bid farewell to Erena, seeing her off on her journey back to Akiba with bright smiles. They wish her a safe travel home and Nico makes sure to shout her thanks one last time before Erena is far out of sight. The black haired girls spirits are high despite being up earlier than the normal wake up time and Nozomi takes the opportunity to try and tease her.

"We have a new morning person it seems~" The violet haired girl jokes as Nico climbs onto Kuro.

"Hah, you wish!" Nico retorts. "But even being up this early can't dampen my mood. Finding out my siblings are alive, nothing is better!"

Nozomi laughs lightly as she climbs onto her own horse, patting it gently.

"I couldn't agree more Nicocchi. It really is the greatest news." Nozomi smiles towards her friend and they share a small laugh.

Nico's eyes catch a glimpse of Eli's blonde hair as she talks with Umi and Maki, discussing the plans of today's travel breaks and how far she wanted them to get within the day. She waits patiently for them to break apart before smiling cheekily and saying loud enough for the blonde to hear her.

"You know, all the commotion with my siblings has probably excited the Captain." She doesn't hide her smirk as Nozomi looks at her curiously. "We are going to be seeing her sister soon, and she's probably dying to meet you Nozomi."

Nozomi blushes lightly and Eli laughs, catching their attention. The two of them look over to her as she mounts her own horse, balancing herself atop it and nodding in agreement with Nico.

"Knowing Alisa, she's probably been waiting at the Forest Inn since the announcement reached the village." Nico laughs and Honoka overhears the conversation, grinning a bit and watching Umi tiredly enter the carriage.

"She'll be excited to see Umi-chan again too I bet~ She adored her in the fall." Honoka snickers a bit as she remembers the overly excited young adult during her stay at the castle last fall.

"If Umi-chan wasn't resting in the carriage, she'd disagree with that." Hanayo says with a small smile as she takes her seat at the front of the carriage, Rin climbing up excitedly next to her.

"Agreed." Nico says with a grin. "Though let's face it, Nozomi's going to be the one she's all over this time."

There are a few laughs and nods of agreement as Nozomi blushes a bit more, smiling lightly as the group begins to move out on the pathway, Eli and Nozomi leading the way with Honoka and Nico at the rear end of the carriage. Maki and Umi rest inside the carriage with Kotori as the journey to the final village in Otonokizaka draws nearer.

They take a break only once, allowing Maki and Umi to rest enough to get back to traveling on horseback. Hanayo decides to take a break from driving to rest with Kotori inside the carriage and Rin takes her spot in the driver's seat. Maki rides at the back with Nico while Honoka joins Umi, Nozomi and Eli at the front.

Their excitement to reach the final village grows as the scenery begins to change from wide open fields with occasional clusters of trees to large groups of foliage and shrubs scattered from place to place. Eli sighs contently as she's hit with a bit of nostalgia from the day she left her town, the scenery going from the tall trees and shrubs to the open fields that eventually lead to the castle. She observes her squad as their horses continued the trek down the pathway, content to see that everyone looks as ready for her village as she does.

The hours fly by and eventually the large forest comes into view. Eli's expression softens as they continue down the familiar dirt path that leads to her childhood home. The edge of the forest stretches on for miles and at the mouth of the woods lays a very large log cabin, covered by the shade of the trees but impossible to miss. The blonde turns to her squad, beaming widely and calling out to everyone.

"The Inn is in sight! We'll be there in no time!" She calls out loudly.

Honoka and Rin cheer, followed by a slightly delayed and faint Nico. Nozomi and Umi chuckle softly as Eli turns her head forward again, tapping her heels into the side of her horse to increase his speed. Her squad follows suit, the horses going from a walk to a trot. Hanayo and Kotori both open the carriage windows, peering out and down the path with bright eyes as they see the giant forest and its inn ahead of them.

"We're almost there!" Kotori says giddily, poking her head back inside the carriage to make sure she's prepared for meeting the innkeepers.

Before they know it, everyone is pulling their horses to a stop directly in front of the inn. Umi and Eli dismount their horses with care, petting them lightly before handing them off to Rin, who takes both of their reins carefully from the higher ranked knights. The rest of the girls dismount their own horses as Hanayo exits the carriage, smoothing out her clothes.

"Umi and I will be arranging our check in." Eli announces. "Just stay put everyone, when we come back we'll take care of the horses and carriage."

"Alright Captain!" Kotori beams, happy to be out of her carriage.

The two enter the inn, shutting the door carefully behind them. Nico and Maki walk their horses around the carriage, meeting up with the rest who stand still patiently waiting. Nico steps over to Nozomi, nudging her playfully and shooting her a small grin, to which Nozomi returns with her own tiny smile. They begin to converse as they wait for the other two to return.

The inn door suddenly slams open and out rushes a blonde haired girl with two very curly pigtails, looking excitedly around until her eyes come in contact with Kotori. The knights look over to find Umi appearing beside her and in only a few steps the both of them have reached Kotori.

"Your majesty, this is the Innkeeper, Ayumi Tori." Umi gestures to the blonde, who curtsies immediately.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, your majesty. We've been expecting you!" She greets in a chipper voice.

While Kotori distracts herself with the villager, Umi gives the squad the go to to begin unpacking the horses and the essentials from the carriage. Rin and Hanayo waste no time in gathering the horses while the rest head straight towards the carriage. Nozomi moves to help out until a hand wraps around her wrist. She stops and turns, surprised to find Eli holding onto her gently with that crooked smile she loves so much.

"Sorry Nozomi, I need to borrow you for a moment." She apologizes. Nozomi smiles reassuringly, telling Eli it's alright with no words.

The blonde pulls Nozomi towards the inn, an excited bounce to her step as they get closer. Nozomi quirks her eyebrow as she smiles more, enjoying how Eli freely shows how giddy she is.

"Excited, Elichi?" Nozomi asks amused. Eli laughs lightly, a light tint to her cheeks.

"Of course." She smiles at the violet haired girl before opening the door to the inn. "There's someone here that I'd really like you to meet."

Nozomi doesn't get the chance to say anything more as she's pulled into the inn, letting Eli guide her as her eyes adjust to the dimmer lighting. There's a small gasp of delight and Nozomi's eyes find their way to a new face. Her eyes widen ever so slightly as the girl steps closer, the same blue eyes that match Eli's boring into her.

Alisa stands only a few inches shorter than Eli, but the resemblance between the two of them is uncanny. Her hair falls down below her shoulders, long and a lighter shade of blonde than Eli's but very well kept. Her eyes shimmer as she stares at Nozomi and she hesitates to take another step forward until Eli pulls Nozomi a step closer to her. The younger Ayase's blue eyes scan over Nozomi once, twice, before she smiles even wider. Nozomi can't contain her own as it crawls onto her features. The Ayase sisters are too cute for their own good, she muses as Eli begins to speak.

"Alisa, I'd like you to meet Nozomi. My best friend and the love of my life." There's pride in Eli's voice as Nozomi laughs lightly, blushing at the use of the endearment Eli turns her attention to Nozomi, her smile widening as she introduces her sister for the first time.

"And Nozomi, this is Alisa. My little sister."

"You're _amazing_ little sister you mean~" Alisa's voice is much higher and playful sounding as she corrects. Nozomi laughs a bit more, growing more and more fond of the other girl the longer they stand there.

The violet haired girl wants to speak first but Alisa cuts her off as she grabs ahold of Nozomi's hands in her own, squeezing them lightly and staring directly into Nozomi's eyes.

"I'm so glad I finally get to meet you, Nozomi!"

Nozomi finds a lot of comfort as she stares at Alisa and returns the light squeeze.

"As am I, Alisa." She replies, her nerves gone. "It's a pleasure to meet you!"

"The pleasure's all mine!" the younger girl exclaims with a laugh, lowering their hands. "Now I finally have a face to put with your name! Eli's descriptions really don't do you justice, even if they were cheesily accurate."

Nozomi eyes Eli with a teasing smirk as the older blonde blushes, laughing in embarrassment. The blonde didn't mind the teasing, it was wonderful to see that her baby sister and the love of her life get along so easily during their first meeting. It was amusing to think that merely moments earlier, there were nervous feelings about if they would get along with one another.

"Listen, I promised Tori-san I'd help out with the rooming arrangements for the Queen and everyone else, but you two are having dinner with me!" Alisa flashes them a grin before dashing to the door, calling out to the inn keeper to let her know she was ready to assist.

Nozomi and Eli laugh lightly, the two sharing a small smile before making their way outside to the others.

* * *

The village itself is incredible. Alisa gives them all the grand tour of the place, showing them the attractions such as their market and the woodcutters. Eli would make small remarks here and there, adding to things Alisa had pointed out or brought up. The squad is quite interested in the little things like the protective barn almost everyone had to keep their horses safe as well as the intricate chicken coops that keeps their poultry safe from predators that lurk in the woods. Alisa even shares a story with the group about a time when Eli found a fox kit caught in the wiring of their chicken coop and secretly kept it inside their house.

After the tour and story tellings are over, Kotori spends time with some of the villagers, listening to their stories and answering any questions she can. She gives the squad permission to have some time to themselves, and they all disperse in pairs. Honoka and Umi join Kotori as she talks with the townsfolk while Hanayo and Rin decide to walk around the village with Nico and Maki not too far behind them. Eli leads Nozomi towards the outside of the village, their hands fitting perfectly together as the blonde begins her own special tour for her lover.

When morning comes the squad rises early, surprised to find the townsfolk up awake and Alisa smiling widely at them. Eli looks questioningly towards her little sister, who laughs at the gaze.

"We don't have a gift to present to you your Majesty, so as a small token of our thanks, we've packed up your carriage with all your equipment, stocked you up with as much food as we could and have prepared all your horses for your final journey back home." She answers the unsaid question with a smile. "Not that we want to see you go, but we know the Queen needs to be back at her castle eventually."

Kotori laughs a bit as she walks over to Alisa, looking at the younger girl with warm eyes and a kind smile.

"Thank you for your assistance, Alisa-chan, everyone..!" There is no greater expression than the joy on Kotori's face as she continues speaking. "There could be nothing that I'd have enjoyed more than spending the last of my adventure here in your cozy woodland home. It was the perfect place for our final town visit, and I'm sure that my advisors, the Captain and her squad fully agree."

The squad stays silent, smiling while Kotori talks to the townsfolk. She wraps it up quickly and formally, as a proper Queen should. When Kotori turns to Eli, the blonde nods, turning to her squad and giving them their instructions.

"If there are any last minute things you need to do, now would be a good time." She says to them. "We leave in ten minutes!"

"Yes Captain!" Her squad replies in unison.

Everyone makes themselves busy before their last send off. Eli watches Hanayo lead Kotori to the villagers to talk one last time with them as Honoka and Umi make their way to the carriage to make sure Kotori's possessions are packed safely. Rin, Nico, and Maki are examining the horses, talking with each other to make sure everyone's gear is there and the horses are ready to go. Her gaze finally leads to the missing person, who was having a final conversation with her sister in law.

Eli watches fondly as Alisa and Nozomi laugh together, no doubt sharing another quirky fact or memory about herself with each other. There's a small moment of nothing between them before they share a hug. The Captain smiles happily, enjoying watching the moment as they pull away, Nozomi taking hold of Alisa's hands and saying something quietly to her. Eli takes this as her cue to say farewell to her sister, walking over and making herself known to the two of them.

With their goodbyes said and everyone prepared, Hanayo and Honoka follow Kotori inside the carriage as Umi takes the seat on the drivers spot. Nico, Maki, and Rin lead the way this time while Nozomi and Eli cover the rear. When Eli gives them the go ahead, Maki leads the way and the nine girls begin their departure out of the village and down the forest path.

The sun beams brightly through the breaks in the trees above, tendrils of light cascading beautifully through the forest as the cicadas sing their sunny day song. The walk is quiet and calm as the group enjoys the sounds of the forest around them. The soothing atmosphere makes for a perfect final moment, and Eli knows later this moment might bring a lot of nostalgia for them all.

"Can you believe our journey is done so soon?" Eli glances to her right at Nozomi, who gazes at her with a fond smile.

"Not at all." Eli responds. "Time went by really fast huh? We spent practically two months on the road and yet it feels like we left the castle town yesterday."

Nozomi hums in agreement.

"Time really flies when you're having fun." She says in amusement.

"It really was fun." The blonde sighs contently. There's a tiny pause before she looks ahead at the carriage. "What was your favourite part?"

Nozomi contemplates the question and smiles.

"If I can't say everything as an answer, then I'll stick with the surprise from Erena." Nozomi says fondly. "That letter for Nicocchi was the best surprise."

Eli glances to Nozomi again, nodding in agreement with her.

"I think so too."

The two fall silent and Eli brings her horse closer to Nozomi's. The two send loving gazes each other's way and wordlessly reach for their hands, grasping onto the other lightly. Eli gives it a gentle squeeze as the sounds of birds calling to one another echo around them.

"What do you think will happen next?" Nozomi asks curiously, gazing in front of them. Eli thinks about it and answers with the first thing that comes to mind.

"We'll get home, fall back into our daily routines and.." She pauses, waiting for Nozomi to look at her before giving her a tiny grin. "The rest is what we make of it."

Nozomi giggles lightly, contemplating Eli's answer and nodding in agreement with it.

"I can't wait." She says with a tiny hint of excitement.

The two of them face forward again, the group passing through a rather large gap of light between the tree's on the pathway. Eli continues to smile as she thinks about the castle and all the adventures that await them and with that all in mind, she voices her reply to Nozomi.

"I can't either."

The End


End file.
